Quote:
Originally Posted by Lynx-lynx
My point is though, would the discussion have taken place outside of the US by the copyright holders.  |
Legally, I think it could. As far as I know, copyright is everywhere considered to include the right of the copyright holder to withdraw publication rights.
The Seuss situation is a special example of self-censorship, comparable to that where an author avoids topics where his or her views would give offense to powerful others. And self-censorship is found in many nations.
Of course, the Seuss case isn't one where the
author self-censors, but rather it is being done by his legatees. That has to be rare anywhere, because, until recently, an author's backlist almost always became uneconomical to keep in print long before copyright expired. With eBooks, and perhaps print on demand, that has changed.
Withdrawing eBooks, because the author's ideas generate outrage in succeeding generations, is something new. The U.S. may be first there, but I think will not be the last.