Carcharoth wrote:
On Fri, Mar 6, 2009 at 11:14 AM, Sam Blacketer sam.blacketer@googlemail.com wrote:
On 3/6/09, K. Peachey p858snake@yahoo.com.au wrote:
Yes, but why *that* picture of Jimmy?
I would say that BBC gets all their photos though Getty Images, and thats just the image that they had on file when BBC first wanted one so that became their file photo for jimbo and has never updated it.
BBC News online has always preferred to use wierd/odd pictures to ordinary looking ones. If it's someone for whom there are a lot of images, they will always use the one taken mid-grimace, or when they were wearing a silly hat, or when someone in a gorilla suit was behind them.
Getty have quite a lot of Jimmy pics. I like this one:
Image number: 81165277
Can't work out how to link to it, but the caption says (only quoting first bit):
"SHARM EL-SHEIKH, EGYPT- MAY 20: Jimmy Wales, founder and chair emritus of Wikia, USA, looks on during the closing session of the World Economic Forum on the Middle East..."
[Have they confused Wikipedia and Wikia?]
And he's in profile, holding a pen.
Of course, it's easier to reuse the picture you have on file already.
Does the BBC realize that they could freely use Commons pictures just like any individual, or do they have some kind of exclusivity arrangement with Getty? Surely if more commercial users realized this it could become a problem for Getty. O:-)
Ec