A federal judge has dismissed a copyright infringement lawsuit brought by the official campaign photographer for Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (AOC). The suit, filed by Jesse Korman, claimed that The Washington Free Beacon illegally used a cutout of his portrait of AOC in articles concerning the congresswoman's alleged illegal parking.

The Lawsuit and the Image in Question

Korman's Role and the Original Photograph

Jesse Korman served as AOC's political campaign photographer during her successful 2018 congressional run. During this period, Korman captured the defining campaign portrait of AOC, showing her looking past the camera.

The Alleged Infringement

The Washington Free Beacon, identified as a conservative American political journalism website, utilized a cutout of this Korman-shot portrait. The image was juxtaposed with a photograph showing AOC's white Tesla illegally parked near a grocery store.

Four years after the initial use, in 2025, Korman filed the copyright infringement suit. He argued that the website's use of the photograph had substantially harmed the market value of his original image.

The Court's Ruling on Fair Use

Transformative Use and Political Commentary

In her ruling, Judge Brinkema determined that the news outlet's use of the photograph qualified as transformative and was protected under the doctrine of fair use. The judge noted that the website did not use the photo for the same purpose for which it was originally created.

Judge Brinkema directly compared the usage to Andy Warhol's artistic commentary on consumerism using Campbell's soup logos in the 1960s. Because the purpose shifted from campaign promotion to criticism, the usage was deemed “plainly transformative.”

Shifting Purpose of the Image

The court found that The Washington Free Beacon was not using the image to depict AOC positively or to aid her political campaign. Instead, the outlet employed the photograph as part of its critique of AOC’s politics, focusing on perceived hypocrisy regarding elitism versus common folk claims.

The judge stated that this usage closely mirrors the Campbell’s soup hypothetical discussed in the Warhol case. Warhol's artwork commented on consumerism, a purpose “orthogonal to advertising soup,” just as the website used the photo for political commentary.

Implications for Journalism and Free Speech

Judge Brinkema concluded that the news outlet's reporting, which incorporates photographs to criticize public figures, represents a clear instance of legitimate political commentary. She argued that requiring journalists to seek permission or pay royalties to use such photos would severely impede free speech.

The opinion stressed that such a requirement would frustrate the balance Congress established between copyright protection and the necessary free flow of ideas. “Imposing a requirement on journalists to receive permission from, and pay royalties to, copyright holders to use their photographs as part of political criticism regarding the public figures depicted would frustrate the balance Congress struck between robust copyright protections and the free flow of ideas,” Brinkema wrote.

Prior Litigation Involving Korman

This is not the first time Korman has pursued legal action over the use of his AOC photograph. In 2020, Korman also sued Fox News Network LLC for copyright infringement related to the reproduction and public display of the same photo during a television broadcast.