Free Republic

With the constitutionality of Illinois' eavesdropping law already facing several court challenges, a Democratic state representative from Northbrook has filed a bill that would allow people to audio-record a police officer working in public without the officer's consent. "I believe that the existing statute is a significant intrusion into First Amendment rights, so with the prosecutions and the court cases that have been reported about, it just seemed that this is a problem in need of a swift solution," Rep. Elaine Nekritz said in an interview Thursday. Illinois' eavesdropping law is one of the strictest in the country and makes...

Supreme Court OKs Use of Video Recorders in Homes 5-4 Decision in Copyright Case: The Supreme Court Jan. 17 ruled, 5-4, that the noncommercial home use of video cassette recorders did not violate the federal Copyright Act of 1976. The decision in Sony v. Universal City Studios had been one of the most eagerly awaited of the current high court term. According to the video industry, an estimated 10% of U.S. households had VCRs, with about eight million machines in use at the end of 1983. VCR sales in 1984 were expected to be over five million. The ruling was...

An Illinois judge ruled the state’s eavesdropping law unconstitutional as applied to a man who faced up to to 75 years in prison for secretly recording his encounters with police officers and a judge. “A statute intended to prevent unwarranted intrusions into a citizen’s privacy cannot be used as a shield for public officials who cannot assert a comparable right of privacy in their public duties,” the judge wrote in his decision dismissing the five counts of eavesdropping charges against defendant Michael Allison. “Such action impedes the free flow of information concerning public officials and violates the First Amendment right...

TAMERA MEDLEY begged the police officer to stop slamming her head - over and over - into the hood of a police cruiser. Thinking they were helping, passers-by Shakir Riley and Melissa Hurling both turned their cellphone video cameras toward the melee that had erupted on Jefferson Street in Wynnefield, they said. But then the cops turned on them. Riley had started to walk away when at least five baton-wielding cops followed him, he said, and they beat him, poured a soda on his face and stomped on his phone, destroying the video he had just taken. Meanwhile, two officers...

Michael Allison, a 41-year-old backyard mechanic from southeastern Illinois, faces up to 75 years in prison for an act most people don’t realize is a crime: recording public officials. Allison lives in Bridgeport, Illinois, and often spends time at his mother’s house in Robinson, one county to the north. Both towns have abandoned property (or “eyesore”) ordinances prohibiting the parking of inoperable or unregistered vehicles on private property except in enclosed garages. These rules place a substantial burden on hobbyists like Allison; to obey the law he must either build a garage—which he says isn’t an option, given his property...

There’s been a misconception in the media lately about it being illegal to videotape cops in three states; Maryland, Massachusetts and Illinois. That’s not exactly true. In Massachusetts, it is illegal to secretly record anybody without their consent, but there is no law against openly videotaping anybody in public with or without their consent, including cops. In fact, charges have been dropped against people who have been arrested for videotaping cops in public in Massachusetts. In Maryland, state police and a certain prosecutor treat it as if it is illegal but another state attorney as well as the attorney general...

The debate over whether citizens should be permitted to record on-duty police officers intensified this summer. High profile incidents in Maryland, Illinois, Florida, Ohio, and elsewhere spurred coverage of the issue from national media outlets ranging from the Associated Press to Time to NPR. Outside the law enforcement community, a consensus seems to be emerging that it’s bad policy to arrest people who photograph or record police officers on the job. The Washington Post, USA Today, the Washington Examiner, The Washington Times, and Instapundit’s Glenn Reynolds, writing in Popular Mechanics, all weighed in on the side that citizen photography and...

In a column last month I wrote about Anthony Graber, a Maryland man who was arrested for posting a video of a traffic stop to YouTube. Graber was pulled over on his motorcycle by Maryland State Trooper Joseph David Ulher. Uhler drew his gun during the stop. Graber was wearing a camera on his helmet. Graber thought Uhler's actions were excessive, so he posted the video to the Internet. Days later, police raided the home of Graber's parents. Graber was arrested, booked, and jailed. He was charged with violating Maryland's wiretapping statute. In an interview he gave to blogger Carlos...

thatstheguy07 — May 17, 2010 — Since this video has been getting so many views, and ppl have been asking the same questions, I figured Id explaion a ciuple things here. This video was sent to me by someone on facebook. I dont know who the guy is, what the aftermath was, or which crossing this was at.

Jay Leno has done more than just bomb in his prime-time slot on NBC. He may have started a revolution there. It seems that not only are viewers tuning out Leno and other shows offered at 10 p.m. -- they are actually using the slot to catch up on shows they've recorded. DVR usage, which like live programming is measured by Nielsen Co., is up by 1.4 household ratings points in the 10 p.m. slot, while NBC has lost an average of 1.8 points compared to fall 2008. "The DVR phenomenon is a little bit higher than we thought," said...

At last month's huge U2 show at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, Calif., how could you tell the difference between the professional photographers and your average amateurs? Answer: the professionals were the ones whisked away after Bono and friends finished their third song, and the amateurs were still there, happily shooting to their heart's content. Nearly every person at any show these days is going to have some form of camera with them, be it a point-and-shoot, an iPhone or some other camera phone, and it seems that there is almost no way to imagine keeping all those devices out....

I guess no one has ever thought of this before. This guy is gonna make a mint selling these things. Buy while you can!!!

We would like to inform all our readers that update on Michelle Obama story will be released tomorrow. We have understood the importance that the American people put into electing the right candidate for the Presidency. It is important that the tapes be released and all can judge for themselves what Mrs Obama meant and why it has come at the near-end of electioneering. The fact that the mainstream American media has been reluctant to reveal what they know about Obama is very unfortunate. The American mainstream media seems to be interested in excitement and we all know that the...

There is a considerable demand for a feature on cell phones that would record conversations. Given today's technology and cheap memory, it would be very easy. Moreover, It would be legal in the approximately 37 states and the Federal government that allow recording of conversations when a person involved in the conversation approves of it. It would be an excellent tool for recording conversations with "customer service" who record us all the time, and for any official or contractual conversations where matters of law might be involved. Manufacturers of cell phones seem to have gone to considerable lengths to insure...

Just in time for Passover, the Jewish Music Group (a division of Shout Factory) has released "Exodus: An Oratorio in Three Parts," performed by the Arkansas Symphony Orchestra. It is conducted by David Itkin, who created and composed the Oratorio, sung by baritone Paul Rowe and includes dramatic readings from the Bible and from the haggadah, spoken by none other than Shatner... (there is an excerpt at the site)

World's oldest voice recording goes online It's no-one's idea of great music -- to some, it may sound like a dolphin with tonsilitis -- but the ghostly warbling of a French folk song nearly 148 years ago comprises the oldest recording of the human voice, France's Academy of Sciences says. The 10-second recording was made by a Parisian inventor, Edouard-Leon Scott de Martinville on April 9 1860, when Emperor Napoleon III, the last monarch of France, was on the throne. It was made a whole 17 years before Thomas Edison made his historic message, "Mary Had a Little Lamb" on...

I have been recording NCIS season 4 episodes for my son who is in Iraq. My recorder did not record Tuesday, May 8's episode and it lays the basis for the season 4 finale.Can anyone send me a copy so I can send it to my son?

Article published Jun 29, 2006 Man charged after videotaping police By Andrew Wolfe Telegraph Staff NASHUA – A city man is charged with violating state wiretap laws by recording a detective on his home security camera, while the detective was investigating the man’s sons. Michael Gannon, 49, of 26 Morgan St., was arrested Tuesday night, after he brought a video to the police station to try to file a complaint against Detective Andrew Karlis, according to Gannon’s wife, Janet Gannon, and police reports filed in Nashua District Court. Police instead arrested Gannon, charging him with two felony counts of violating...

The music industry's latest lawsuit -- this time against XM Satellite Radio Holdings Inc. over its new player -- is generating a lot of poor publicity. Still, experts tell UPI's Wireless World the recording business probably has a good argument in court because of an apparent marketing malfunction by the satellite-radio producers. Recent court decisions are giving the Washington-based Recording Industry Association of America a likely edge in this litigation. By Gene Koprowski

Hello all. I hope someone here can assist me. I am looking for a good application for recording from vinyl. My motherboard came with good built in audio but no app for recording I'd also like to listen to music thru the line in jack.I've tried MusicMatch & WinAmp but these only seem to be able to play from MP3 files and have no line in option for the playing sourceI was thinking of buying EasyMediaCreator8. Any ideas?? I'm not adverse to buying a new soundboard if it comes with a good application.Many thanks in advance!

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — The Justice Department said Friday it was moving to dismiss a federal lawsuit challenging the Bush administration's secretive domestic wiretapping program. The lawsuit, brought by the Internet privacy group, Electronic Frontier Foundation, does not include the government. Instead, it names AT&T, which the San Francisco-based group accuses of colluding with the National Security Agency to make communications on AT&T networks available to the spy agency without warrants.

NEW YORK - Rock bands Cheap Trick and The Allman Brothers Band are suing Sony Music, claiming they are being shortchanged on royalties for songs downloaded legally over the Internet.... According to the suit, the record company is treating digital downloads like traditional record sales, rather than licensed music, triggering a different royalty deal. Under that old rubrik, the record company deducts fees for the kind of extra costs they used to incur when records were pressed on vinyl, including packaging charges, restocking costs and losses due to breakage....

MetroSource News 02:28:54 Satellite Recording Ban Capitol Hill Battle Brewing Over Satellite Radio Broadcasts (Washington, DC) -- Fearing a wave of illegal distribution of copyrighted music, lawmakers on Capitol Hill will consider legislation that would effectively ban all recording of satellite radio programming. The "Perform Act" circumvents the Audio Home Recording Act, which gives consumers the right to record material for private, non-commercial purposes, by requiring satellite broadcasters to either install equipment that prevents their programs from being recorded, or provide compensation to artists and performers to cover potential financial losses due to illegal distribution of their material. The Recording...

The Videotape Recorder Turns 50 Routine NAB preview event showcased revolutionary technologyby James E. O'Neal The Ampex video recorder is unveiled at the NARTB show in Chicago, April 14, 1956. FALLS CHURCH, VA.: In an age when video cameras and recording devices are virtually everywhere, it's difficult to believe that it wasn't always possible to walk into a Wal-Mart or Best Buy store with $50 and leave with a new video recorder. The science of magnetically recording video images is so mature today that it's taken completely for granted, but that was not always the case. Television broadcasting as...

WASHINGTON - A high school band plays Beethoven. President Calvin Coolidge delivers his inaugural address. Fats Domino turns “Blueberry Hill,” which had been a hit for Glenn Miller, into a rock ’n’ roll classic. They’re among the 50 records that the Library of Congress has deemed worthy of preservation this year.Other rock classics being inducted include Jerry Lee Lewis’ “Whole Lotta Shakin’ Goin’ On” and Buddy Holly’s “That’ll Be the Day,” both from 1957; the Jimi Hendrix Experience’s “Are You Experienced?” from 1967; and Sonic Youth’s landmark noise-rock album “Daydream Nation,” from 1988.Rest of the story here

-- Music copied onto blank recordable CDs is becoming a bigger threat to the bottom line of record stores and music labels than online file-sharing, the head of the recording industry's trade group said Friday. "Burned" CDs accounted for 29 percent of all recorded music obtained by fans in 2004, compared to 16 percent attributed to downloads from online file-sharing networks, said Mitch Bainwol, chief executive for the Recording Industry Association of America. The data, compiled by the market research firm NPD Group, suggested that about half of all recordings obtained by music fans in 2004 were due to authorized...

Underwater microphones pick up dull, deadly roar in Indian Ocean---- Sound from last December's huge tsunami-causing earthquake was picked up by underwater microphones designed to listen for nuclear explosions.Scientists this week released an audio file of the frighteningly long-lasting cracks and splits along the Sumatra-Andaman Fault in the Indian Ocean. The spine-tingling hiss and rumble is an eerie reminder of the devastation and death that is still being tallied in the largest natural disaster in modern times. At least 200,000 people are thought to have died as a result of the magnitude-9.3 earthquake, the tsunami, and the lack of food,...

..."Computers are the new garage," said James Rotondi, the editor of Future Music, a new magazine packaged with enough free software to get any would-be Moby started. "A lot of people who are making music right now have never recorded to tape. The concept is completely foreign to them." Music recording, an arduous, analog process that has long been the province of musician gearheads and studio savants, is being downsized and democratized by a virtual array of digital sound loops, simulated instruments and the notebook-size means to record them. The growing power of laptop computers and new software means consumers...

An operations manager for Jack in the Box was late for a meeting and called his boss to let him know he was running late. As the manager was leaving the voicemail message, he witnessed an accident and went on to provide a "play by play" account of the incident. This is the actual voicemail message. It was forwarded so many times within Jack in the Box that it crashed their voicemail server. Click Here For Audio

I had a wonderful time visiting with Sherman at the barbershop yesterday. He’s quite the comedian. His stories can be so outlandish that I sometimes wonder if they’re true, though I don’t suppose it matters. The subject of his most recent yarn was his carefree nephew Charles. He described him as reckless – but the kind of reckless that you can’t help but love. Charles had decided to try his luck as a bootlegger, but he got off to a rough start for lack of regular customers. The lad’s brew was good enough, Sherman assured us, but he had to...

WASHINGTON - Tapes of President Bush that were secretly recorded by an old friend and released to the media now are in the possession of the president's private attorney, the White House said Tuesday. "It's a matter that we consider closed at this point," White House press secretary Scott McClellan said. Doug Wead allowed journalists to hear and broadcast the tapes as he promoted his new book on presidential parents. But he said last week he had regrets about that and was turning the tapes over to Bush and giving the proceeds from his book to charity. On the tapes,...

I'd like to solicit advice opinions warnings etc. from any musical freeper who has been in the recording studio. I know studios have their flat rate per hour but I'm guessing that any post production is extra? I'm going to book time for my daughter both solo and with a band she's in so it would be nice to know SOMETHING prior to going in on this.

WASHINGTON--A federal appeals court on Tuesday sharply questioned whether the Federal Communications Commission has the authority to ban certain types of digital TV receivers, including peripheral cards, starting in July. Two of the three judges on the District of Columbia Circuit panel said the FCC never received permission from Congress to undertake such a sweeping regulation, which is intended to encourage the purchase of digital TV receivers that curb Internet distribution of over-the-air broadcasts of programming such as movies and sports. "You're out there in the whole world, regulating. Are washing machines next?" asked Judge Harry Edwards. Quipped Judge David...

My Great Grandfather made a series of recordings during his lifetime. This transcript is of one of the “mini sermons” he recorded to send to my Grandfather and his fellow soldiers during WWII. None of them last very long, usually less than 5 minutes, but he made a ton of them. Here’s one from July 1943. I received a letter from Marion last Friday and it seems that many of you are thinking about what’s to come. What’ll be your business when you get back home? What will you do? I can’t answer that question. I can only give you...

The purpose of FreeRepublic.com's multiple message boards is to limit the topics for each board to particular topics. Posting the same message on all the boards defeats the purpose of multiple-boards for special topics. It is very annoying to see the same message on every bulletin board. PLEASE! DO THE READERS A FAVOR. STOP CROSS-POSTING YOUR MESSAGES!

Rush is on here in Penna at 12 noon, EST; Savage comes on at 6pm, EST. I'm frequently either on the road, or with customers here at my nursery, and sometimes miss part or all of their streamed broadcasts. If anyone does record them, or anyother talk shows, what software do you like and use? My computer's TV tuner card/ (www.hauppauge.com) doesn't works for streamed audio; only for the cable modem. I went to ZDnet.com's downloads page, and found a boatload of players and recorders, but most seem to be for mp3/ mpeg files. I've downloaded UltraPlayer (www.ultraplayer.com) and upgraded...

I heard this on KSFO this morning. They have played the recording at least 3 times already. Can anyone fill in the details? An active military constituent wrote Pete Stark asking about his recent NO vote on the congressional resolution of yesterday. Congressman Pete Stark (D) called back and left the voice mail belittling the person and using foul language. Sussman and Morgan, the hosts, are going to get the recording to Rush this morning. Don’t miss the rest of the KSFO, 560AM on the dial, morning program. Maybe someone will have the capability to make a .wav file of...

<p>Former President Bill Clinton last week told the September 11 commission that he never admitted passing up a chance to have Osama bin Laden arrested — even though his words were caught on tape, NewsMax.com reports.</p> <p>Former Sen. Bob Kerrey, Nebraska Democrat, revealed the Clinton denial to WDAY Fargo, N.D., radio host Scott Hennen for an interview set for broadcast today, NewsMax said.</p>

Three American presidents, Kennedy, Johnson and Nixon, bugged their White House offices and tapped their telephones, leaving behind thousands of secretly recorded conversations. American Radio Works.com lets visitors eavesdrop on these presidential telephone calls to hear how each man used one-on-one politics to shape history. Hear the tapes, read background material on the historical issues, read the transcripts. The recordings of JFK, the first president to secretly tape his calls regularly, show a man of both charm and limitations. The 9,500 calls LBJ secretly taped are a revealing record of his character and presidency, from Selma to Vietnam. Nixon taped...

RIAA nails 1,000 music-lovers in 'new Prohibition' jihad By Andrew Orlowski in San Francisco Posted: 19/07/2003 at 11:26 GMT The Recording Industry Association of America's attack on US culture has escalated at an alarming pace this week. On Friday the lobby group that works on behalf of the large, mostly foreign-owned, music conglomerates that own the music copyrights and distribution channels confirmed that it was serving subpoenas at the rate of 75 a day on US citizens for the crime of sharing the music they love. This signals a change of tactics for the RIAA: as now each individual file...

Fri 17 Jan 2003 Gaelic-speaking 'ghost' caught on recording CLAIRE SMITH csmith@scotsman.com NEW evidence of ghosts in Edinburgh’s underground city have been recorded on tape by a radio producer. Debbie McPhail claims to have made a recording of a ghoulish voice hissing the words: "Get out" or "Go away" in Gaelic. Mrs McPhail described herself as "a cynical person by nature" - but said she had no explanation for the ghostly voice. The otherworldly voice ruined a recording she was making in Edinburgh underground vaults with the former rugby international Norrie Rowan, who owns a section of the underground city....

Missing RIAA figures shoot down "piracy" canard By Andrew Orlowski in San Francisco Posted: 16/12/2002 at 20:15 GMT Research by George Zieman gives the true reason for falling CD sales: the major labels have slashed production by 25 per cent in the past two years, he argues. After keeping the figure rather quiet for two years, the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) says the industry released around 27,000 titles in 2001, down from a peak of 38,900 in 1999. Since year-on-year unit sales have dropped a mere 10.3 per cent, it's clear that demand has held up extremely...

Astronomy Picture of the Day Discover the cosmos! Each day a different image or photograph of our fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation written by a professional astronomer. 2002 August 31 The Voyagers' Message in a BottleCredit: Voyager Project, JPL, NASA Explanation: Launched twenty-five years ago, NASA's Voyager 1 and 2 spacecraft are now over 10 billion kilometers from the Sun. Still operational, the Voyagers are being tracked and commanded through the Deep Space Network. Having traveled beyond the outer planets, these remarkable spacecraft are only the third and fourth human built artifacts to escape our...

Otis Blackwell Otis Blackwell worked as a singer/songwriter/pianist in the 50's, 60's and 70's. Although his recordings never met with much success, many of the songs that he wrote went on to become very well-known, million-selling songs. Otis was born in Brooklyn, New York in 1931. He grew up listening to cowboy songs, particularly those by Tex Ritter, and R&B songs by artists such as Chuck Willis. As a teenager he entered and won a contest at the Apollo Theatre in New York City. He was introduced to songwriter Doc Pomus, who encouraged him and helped him early in his...