Trump Dismisses Copyright Director Perlmutter

President Donald Trump has fired Shira Perlmutter, Director of the U.S. Copyright Office. News outlets like CBS News and Politico reported the dismissal, corroborated by a statement from Representative Joe Morelle, the top Democrat on the House Administration Committee.

“Donald Trump’s termination of Register of Copyrights, Shira Perlmutter, is a brazen, unprecedented power grab with no legal basis,” Morelle stated. “It is surely no coincidence he acted less than a day after she refused to rubber-stamp Elon Musk’s efforts to mine troves of copyrighted works to train AI models.”

Perlmutter's appointment by Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden, whom Trump also fired this week, dates back to 2020 during his first term.

Copyright Office Report and AI Fair Use

The firing follows a recently released U.S. Copyright Office report on copyright and artificial intelligence. The report examines the limitations of "fair use" as a defense for AI companies training their models on copyrighted material. While acknowledging the legality of using copyrighted content for research and analysis, the report raises concerns about commercial use.

The report states that using copyrighted works to create competing content, especially through unauthorized access, exceeds fair use boundaries. It suggests fostering "licensing markets" where AI companies compensate copyright holders and exploring "extended collective licensing" to address market failures. However, the report stops short of recommending government intervention at this time.

Musk, AI, and Copyright Law

Representative Morelle linked Perlmutter's dismissal to Elon Musk, a Trump ally, and his interest in AI. Musk co-founded OpenAI and xAI, which is merging with the former Twitter. He recently supported Jack Dorsey's call to abolish intellectual property law.

OpenAI, currently facing copyright infringement lawsuits, has urged the government to codify a copyright strategy that grants AI companies more leeway through fair use. Trump's dismissal of Perlmutter adds another layer to the ongoing debate surrounding AI, copyright, and fair use.

Trump seemingly confirmed the news by reposting a related article on Truth Social from attorney Mike Davis. Ironically, Davis appeared to criticize the firing, expressing concern over tech companies exploiting creators' copyrights for AI profit.