Donald Trump’s presidential campaign is being sued for copyright infringement over a photo the Republican presidential front-runner used on his campaign merchandise.
Wildlife photographers Robert Rozinski and Wendy Shattil claim Trump’s campaign has been using an “iconic” photograph of a bald eagle, taken decades ago by Rozinski, on yard signs provided to the billionaire’s supporters.
“In 1980, Rozinski created ‘Bald Eagle Portrait,’ an iconic photographic image of a bald eagle,” the lawsuit reportedly alleges. “The photograph captures a piercing, intimate, eye-to-eye moment with this majestic creature with near-perfect symmetry against a flawless sky blue background.”
The duo’s claim, filed earlier this month in New York City, cites a Feb. 9 news report as what led them to notice their image was being used on Trump merchandise. No one involved with the businessman’s campaign ever reached out to them with a request for permission, they allege.
Both photographers claim Trump’s reference to, and use of, bald eagles throughout his campaign has been “deliberate” and his way of reinforcing the “direct and unflinching persona that [he] seeks to project to the American public.”
It is unclear whether the Trump team has responded to the lawsuit, but the businessman has previously said he “never settle[s] cases.”
