New Casey Anthony photos part of old CBS News deal

Context is important in stories, and WFTV-Channel 9 dropped context in reporting on the Casey Anthony saga on Wednesday night. Anthony is charged with first-degree murder in the death of her daughter, Caylee.

WFTV reported that CBS News paid $20,000 for several photos of Casey and Caylee Anthony that were recently posted on the CBS web site. Those photos included one of Casey after giving birth to Caylee. Another showed Casey in her high-school senior portrait.

"CBS News says it got those photos last year," WFTV anchor Bob Opsahl said.

Actually, CBS News last year paid George and Cindy Anthony $20,000 for a trove of material — videos and photos — that the network used on "The Early Show" and "48 Hours Mystery." The parents of Casey Anthony appeared on both those programs as well last fall.

Now you may not like that the Anthonys sold the material. And you may think it's wrong for networks to pay such licensing fees.

But the WFTV report made it sound as if CBS News had paid $20,000 just for those newly posted photos. And the network didn't. The new photos were part of the old licensing deal, CBS News said Monday.

My understanding is that under those deals, such material becomes a network's property in perpetuity. The network can use the photos and video as it sees fit.

Could more be coming?

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