The Portland Press Herald brings word of a brewing copyright dispute. National Public Radio has sent a cease-and-desist to Stand for Marriage Maine over the groups use of NPR content in one of its television adds. NPR, apparently, also sent a takedown notice to Youtube and Hotdaddy.

NPR asserts that Marriage in Maine’s commercial infringes a story “Massachsuetts Schools Grapple with Including Gay & Lesbian Relationships in Sex Education,” from its program All Things Considered. Says NPR’s senior vice president for marketing, communications, and external relations:

NPR did not license use of this story or its content, and would certainly not have licensed or permitted it if we had been asked . . .NPR is a highly respected news organization and does not allow its content to be used by political or advocacy groups. Such use is harmful to the integrity and independence of NPR. NPR does allow – even encourage — personal, non-commercial use of our content, so long as it is not modified, and not used in a manner that suggests NPR promotes or endorses a cause, idea, Web site, product or service. The use made by Stand for Marriage Maine violated all of these terms.