ALERT BLACKSTONIAN FAMILY!!!
I, Jamarhl Crawford, have been served with a cease and desist letter from the NY Times, owner of the Boston Globe, charging “infringement” in the reposting of Globe articles on this site.
WHAT I PLAN ON DOING…
The NY Times has given 3 days to comply with their request
TONIGHT I will begin removing all Globe articles from the Blackstonian so you will notice that many articles will be gone. Although I have been careful to include all credits (writer, photographer, publisher, source) and many links on this site to the Boston Globe and its Your Town sites, I will remove all Globe material under the logic that I was providing a service to the Boston Globe and the Boston Globe was providing no service to the Blackstonian. Many Black, Latino and Cape Verdean people were not readers and would not read the Globe if it were not for the Blackstonian postings of pertinent articles. There may be a way to still post Globe articles but it will take further effort on my part and that is a decision I will have to make in terms of its worth.
After speaking with the legal department of the NY Times, I asked how they were alerted to the Blackstonian and was told that they were informed by a Boston Globe Editor. It is my belief that due to the nature of the mission of the Blackstonian to inform and provide resources to people of color in Boston and beyond, it made the Blackstonian a target. Whoever that Editor is, please know that you have not stopped or even hindered the Blackstonian, but you have almost certainly guaranteed that the Globe will not be given any further free promotion or readership of people of color, particularly in the 16-45 yr. old demographic that the Blackstonian specializes in. It has also made me rethink my relationships with Globe writers and Editorial staff in terms of providing insight on issues and situations, providing quotes, giving information for developing stories and inviting the Globe to cover various initiatives.
Stay Tuned… I will keep you posted as to further developments and my decisions regarding the relationship between the Boston Globe, myself and the Blackstonian.
Any comments 617-297-7721
If that Globe Editor would like to have a discussion on his/her logic I would love to hear that.
