Professor Lee Comments for CBS Sacramento on Candidate's Unauthorized Use of Eminem Song

Professor Peter Lee discussed presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy’s unauthorized use of Eminem’s song “Lose Yourself,” with Dominic Garcia of CBS News Sacramento.

Lee explained that Ramaswamy’s use of the song at campaign events infringed the exclusive right of public performance, which is held by the owner of the copyright in the musical composition. Professor Lee further explained that other unauthorized uses of copyrighted content by campaigns—such as reproducing news articles in television commercials—likely qualified for fair use.

Peter Lee teaches and writes in the field of intellectual property law, particularly focusing on patent law, innovation, and technology transfer. He founded and directs UC Davis Law’s Center for Innovation, Law, and Society.