JACKSON BROWNE Gets Apology from Sen John McCain and Republican Party

      MUSIC NEWS- Arizona Senator John McCain and the Republican Party have issued an apology to singer/songwriter/musician Jackson Browne for the the use of Browne's classic rock tune, "RUNNING ON EMPTY" in a campaign web "attack" ad against Barack Obama during the 2008 presidential campaign.  "Running on Empty" is one of Browne's signature songs and was released back in 1977 on an album of the same name and, according to the lawsuit filed, the album's sold more than 7 million copies.

Mr Browne sued McCain and the Ohio Republican Party in August 2008, which created the ad, in part because he did not want the appearance the he supported Sen McCain or the GOP. Tuesday's  apology is part of a settlement agreement that has the GOP pledging to obtain permission to use artists’ work for political purposes. The financial details of the settlement have not been disclosed.

“Although Senator McCain had no knowledge of, or involvement in, the creation or distribution of the web campaign video, Senator McCain does not support or condone any actions taken by anyone involved in his 2008 presidential election campaign that were inconsistent with artists’ rights or the various legal protections afforded to intellectual property,” the Ohio Republican Party, Republican National Committee, and McCain said in a joint statement in which they promised “in future election campaigns to respect and uphold the rights of artists and to obtain permissions and/or licenses for copyrighted works where appropriate.”

Jackson Browne, currently on tour, responded with:  "This settlement is really a great affirmation of what I believed my rights to be, and all writers' rights to be. One would hope that a presidential candidate would not only know the law but respect it. It was a matter of bringing that issue to bear".