State media Singapore Press Holdings’s chinese papers Shin Ming Ri Bao has been sued for using a copyright photo to feature in their headline news. Photographer Kel Tan left a comment on Shin Ming Ri Bao’s Facebook page saying that the papers used his photo for a front page news over a story of a deceased model:
“Hello Shin Min daily news. Im the photographer of the picture you guys used without my consent on the front page of your newspaper. May I know based on what rights you have to use my picture? Does Shin Min daily news operate without any professional ethics? I will be expecting a formal reply in regards to this matter. I also will be seeking legal advice.”
SPH did not make a response to Kel Tan and ignored his comments on Facebook. A commentator told Kel Tan he has a losing case because the offending party is the government’s media mouthpiece.
SPH is getting a taste of their own medicine as it often sends numerous letters of demands to other news websites filing for compensation when they used SPH photos.
The Chinese SPH papers also posted a fake news exaggerating the death of the deceased model, claiming that the model died from singing high pitch. The deceased model’s father slammed the state media papers:
“She did not die because of singing in a too-high-pitched voice as reported by Chinese-language newspaper.”