X (the platform formerly known as Twitter) may have infringed The Associated Press’ copyright by replicating a now-famous photo of Donald Trump raising his fist for a #MAGA hashmoji.
On July 13, Donald Trump survived an assassination attempt while addressing a campaign rally near Butler, Pennsylvania.
Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump raises his fist as he is rushed off stage after an assassination attempt during a campaign rally in Butler, Pa. @apnews pic.twitter.com/VoAYqRC4QV
— Evan Vucci (@evanvucci) July 14, 2024
Shortly after the incident, Elon Musk, who owns X, made his support for Trump official by endorsing the former president in the upcoming election.
Five days later on July 18, X users began to notice that the social media platform was showing its support for the Republican nominee and custom icons were appearing next to certain pro-Trump hashtags on the social media platform for a brief period.
For example, when an X user posted the hashtag #Trump2024, an American flag appeared beside it in the post and clicking on it caused an animated “hashfetti” effect with flags raining down.
Furthermore, when an X user posted the hashtag #MAGA, a small photo of Trump raising his fist after the shooting, automatically appeared next to the hashtag in the post.
Wow! That’s tacky! There’s now a little icon of Trump raising his fist after the assassination attempt that pops up after someone uses the hashtag #MAGA pic.twitter.com/docAXSUuwe
— Parker Molloy (@ParkerMolloy) July 18, 2024
The photo in the #MAGA hashmoji appeared to look like a low-res version of the instantly iconic image taken by The Associated Press photographer Evan Vucci.
According to a report by The Verge, this hashmoji of Trump may have infringed The Associated Press copyright.
Asked about the hashmoji, The Associated Press communications VP Lauren Easton told The Verge that it was “not an authorized use of our photo” which is “available for editorial use only.”
“The Associated Press is proud of Evan Vucci’s photo and recognizes its impact,” Easton says in a statement to the publication.
“In addition, we reserve our rights to this powerful image.”
An X representative reportedly told The Verge that the hashmoji and hashfetti animations are “a commercially available product” on the social media platform.
The publication asked X whether The Associated Press had licensed the image for this use on the platform or to confirm the purchaser of this commercially available product. However, the social media platform did not respond to the query.
Last week, PetaPixel reported on a company owned by Trump which was selling $299 sneakers with a photo of the former president with his fist raised moments after he had been shot. It seems the particular frame used on the sneaker was taken by photographer Anna Moneymaker of Getty Images.
Image credits: All photos via X/Twitter.