Back in August the news was grim for minors trapped in the San Jose copper-gold mine in Copiapo, Chile.  As in most mining disasters, the expectation was that most, or all, the miners would be dead.

Although there was possible tapping heard from deep below, rescuers were surprised when, two weeks later, attached to one of their drill bits, was a note from one of the miners confirming that they were all alive:

Estamos bien en el refugio los 33

(Translated, “We are okay in the refuge, the 33 of us”).

Sixty nine days after being trapped, all 33 miners were successfully rescued.  They are now world heroes.  There will be book deals, movie deals, etc.  But who (if anyone) owns any rights in the above message?  Is this even copyrightable?

The issue has since been resolved by the Chile Copyright Office in favor of the author, Jose Ojeda.

Note to Mr. Ojeda:  the above use of your intellectual property falls under the category of fair use.