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Rights and Permissions Information

All NPR content (audio, text, photographs, graphics, videos) is protected by copyright in the U.S. and other countries. You do not need a license to use material for personal use. The following contains information on how to request permission to reuse content.

Please contact Copyright Clearance Center for the following requests:

Academic Use of NPR Transcripts at a College or University and textbooks: Contact Copyright Clearance Center Academic Permissions Service at copyright.com or 978-750-8400.

Please use the online permissions form for the following requests:

NPR licenses online reports, transcripts, photos, audio, and video to the following:

  • Reprints, Magazines, Newsletters, Newspapers & E-mail: Rates vary according to circulation size.
  • Audio used in Classroom Teaching at a College or University: Permission is limited to classroom-use during one academic year.
  • Audio used in a Documentary or Presentation: You may request permission for an entire story, an excerpt or a quote. Permission is limited to the one project or presentation specified by the requestor. Rates vary according to the duration of required audio.
  • Trade Books & Textbooks: Rates vary according to print run and whether you use the entire story or a portion of it.

Cost for audio reuse is based on length of use and length of audio. Text and photo reuse is based on print run. We only license for one edition at a time, English language. NPR can license full reports or a continuous excerpt. No edits or alterations are allowed, including translations and cherry-picking.

Use of NPR content as audio props in commercial films or live productions, or use of NPR logo or other trademarks: we consider such requests on a case-by-case basis.

Note that NPR does not license reports to websites but we encourage websites to link to NPR reports.

Here are the rules for linking (from NPR's Terms of Use page at NPR.org):

  • Linking to Content on NPR.org: You may place a link on your web site to NPR audio or other content available through NPR.org. However, NPR is an organization committed to the highest journalistic ethics and standards and to independent, noncommercial journalism, both in fact and in appearance. Therefore, the linking should neither suggest that NPR promotes or endorses any third party's causes, ideas, sites, products or services, nor use NPR content for inappropriate commercial purposes or in any way that is unlawful or harmful. We reserve the right to withdraw permission for any link.

K-12 Use: K-12 teachers may make up to 30 copies of transcripts of NPR content for one-time classroom use. NPR's copyright notice must be legible. For more than 30 copies or to use audio, please contact the NPR Permissions Coordinator.

You do not need permission for:

Individual Use: A limited amount of NPR content may be printed for your own personal, non-commercial use. In the event of such use, all copyright and other notices and clear attribution to NPR must be maintained. The content may not be modified, distributed, retransmitted, or used, in whole or in part, in derivative works. See NPR's Terms of Use. All other uses, including reprinting, republishing, broadcast and any further distribution, require written permission from NPR unless you determine that use of NPR content falls under Fair Use laws. (http://www.copyright.gov/fls/fl102.html).

We typically deny permission to use NPR content or marks in connection with the following:

  • Advertising, marketing or promotional activities;
  • Fundraising; and
  • Political activities (including without limitation use in connection with any endorsement of a candidate for political office, to support any side in a political debate or by any organization with a primarily political purpose).

We reserve the right to refuse any request to reprint NPR content.

Using NPR RSS Feeds and other Content Feeds:

You may use NPR RSS feeds and other content feeds for personal, noncommercial purposes and for certain limited noncommercial purposes of a 501(c)(3) corporation which is not a news organization, subject to the requirements of NPR's Terms of Use (see Content Feed section). Please refer to our Terms of Use. If you would like information on using NPR RSS feeds or Content Feeds for any other use, please contact the Permissions Coordinator.

Accessing API Content

You may access certain content, including audio, text, images and other content, through an application programming interface (API), as described at www.npr.org/api. Content accessed through the API is available to registered users only for personal, non-commercial use, or for the noncommercial online use by a 501(c)(3) corporation which is not a news organizations, subject to the requirements of NPR's Terms of Use (see API Content section). If you would like information on accessing NPR API content for any other use, please contact the Permissions Coordinator.

Additional Information:

To request permission to reproduce NPR content in ways not addressed above or to ask general questions about our permissions policy, please contact us at:

NPR
Attn: Permissions Coordinator
1111 N. Capitol St. NE
Washington, DC 20002
(e-mail) [email protected]
(f) 202-513-3021

If you are ready to make a permission request, please use our online request form.