The Scorpions, the CIA, and Copyright Fraud?

Copyright Fraud in Propaganda Campaigns by Intelligence Agencies

The following is a general discussion of the rumor of CIA involvement with the blockbuster song “Wind of Change” by the Scorpions in the early 1990s. While we have no evidence the rumor is true, we became intrigued about what if the CIA or some other agency actually wrote the lyrics to a song and used it for political influence using a popular band as a front. In particular, would the copyright registration for the song lyrics still be enforceable or would the registration be subject to copyright fraud?

Bringing “Wind of Change” to the Cold War

Known as a power ballad, “Wind of Change” was released in 1991 by West German rock bond the Scorpions as the third single in their 11th album Crazy World (1990). “Wind of Change” became one of the best-selling singles of all time with sales of 14 million copies worldwide and the best-selling song by a German band. According to Wikipedia, the song was composed by the band’s lead singer, Klaus Meine, after a visit to the Soviet Union at the height of Perestroika, “when the enmity between the communist and capitalist blocs subsided concurrently with the promulgation of large-scale socioeconomic reforms in the Soviet Union.”

At a time during the Cold War when “nuclear winter” was a possibility, the Scorpions song lyrics spoke to peace with between the Soviet Union and the West:

[Verse 1]
I follow the Moskva down to Gorky Park
Listening to the wind of change
An August summer night, soldiers passing by
Listening to the wind of change
(*Whistling*)

[Verse 2]
The world is closing in
And did you ever think
That we could be so close like brothers?
The future's in the air, I can feel it everywhere
Blowing with the wind of change

[Chorus]
Take me to the magic of the moment
On a glory night
Where the children of tomorrow dream away (Dream away)
In the wind of change
Hmm

The song became associated with the Fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989. The Scorpions later performed the song at the Brandenburg Gate in Germany on November 9, 1999, commemorating the 10th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall.

Rumors of CIA Involvement With “Wind of Change”

Rumors of CIA involvement with the song have persisted. In 2020, Rolling Stone Magazine asked the question in its article, Could the CIA Have Planted Hair-Metal Propaganda During the Cold War? “But, according to The New Yorker’s Patrick Radden Keefe, there’s reason to believe the hit ballad could have been a CIA concoction created to aid in the West’s fight against communism.” Keefe produced an 8-part podcast to explore this topic called not surprisingly “Wind of Change” where he takes users through possible evidence of CIA involvement, including interviews with musicians, fans, historians, and ex-CIA spooks. The podcast discusses the US’s involvement in foreign affairs through cultural influences. According to the article, Keefe reports that he received a warning from “Rose,” a CIA officer allegedly claiming that the story could put a CIA method at risk. While a bit cloak and dagger, it is an interesting story, particularly for fans of 1980s and 1990s rock music and history buffs.

Whether the CIA had any involvement or influence over “Wind of Change,” we will leave to the readers, sleuths, and experts.

Copyright Fraud and CIA Involvement

But what if the CIA was involved somehow? Could the involvement be limited to just promotion and production of the song? Only funding the song? Or, could the involvement go so far as to actually writing the song lyrics to allegedly advance propaganda through rock music to millions of European fans, including those behind the Iron Curtain?

While we have seen no evidence of this, that got our legal minds working on what the impact might be. Let’s analyze a hypothetical song say about the war between Russia and Ukraine. A three-letter agency wishes to promote peace between the combatants and convinces a musical group to perform a song, ghost written by security agency personnel but passed off as written solely by the band. Would this by copyright fraud? Or, could the agency pull this scheme off and end up with an enforceable copyright in the end?

Copyright Authorship Requirement

Copyright law is the most common tool to protect lyrics, sheet music, and performances. So in our hypothetical situation the band pursues a copyright application at the US Copyright Office. Since the music was written by a shadowy government agency where secrecy is paramount, the band is pressure to file the copyright application in its name. To obtain a copyright registration, an applicant must identify an “author.” According to the Copyright Office:

Under the copyright law, the creator of the original expression in a work is its author. The author is also the owner of copyright unless there is a written agreement by which the author assigns the copyright to another person or entity, such as a publisher. In cases of works made for hire, the employer or commissioning party is considered to be the author. See Circular 9, Work-Made-For-Hire Under the 1976 Copyright Act.

Section 2 in a copyright application for Performing Arts or Sound Recordings (music has two copyrights – one in the lyrics or composition and a second in the performance or recording) requires the applicant to identify the author. The author is typically the person that created the copyrightable work. But an author can also be anonymous or pseudonymous (fictitious name).

Copyright Fraud: Consequences of a False Author

In our hypothetical situation, the real author (CIA special agent Bob) is not named on the copyright application, but instead one or more members of the band are claimed as authors. In this situation where there is a clearly a false statement, there would be grounds to challenge any resulting registration due to fraud on the Copyright Office. If the registration was later enforced and fraud shown, the prevailing defendant would very likely recover attorney’s fees under 17 USC Section 504 of the Copyright Act. Additionally, false statements can carry potential criminal consequences. Section 506(e), 17 USC, states that if a false misrepresentation was made to the Copyright Office the punishment is a fine up to $2,500.

To further this hypothetical plot and avoid copyright fraud situations, ideally the band members would write and perform the lyrics, but be funded by a government agency. Also, since US copyright law only protects the creative expression of the idea, not the idea itself, the CIA could “inspire” the band to write a song with a certain political message then secretly fund its distribution.

Final Thoughts on the “Wind of change”, Copyrights, and the CIA

Regardless of whether the CIA was somehow actually involved in the production of the song “Wind of Change” or not, it is undeniably one of the greatest rock songs of the 1990s. We will probably never know the real truth behind this story. In researching this blog post, we found no evidence of CIA involvement (but that doesn’t mean there wasn’t any).

Setting aside the rumors, you can now (2024) see the Scorpions at their “Love at First Sting” in residency in Las Vegas.

For more information about copyright protection, see our Copyrights and Software practice page.

Klemchuk PLLC is a leading IP law firm based in Dallas, Texas, focusing on litigation, anti-counterfeiting, trademarks, patents, and business law. Our experienced attorneys assist clients in safeguarding innovation and expanding market share through strategic investments in intellectual property.

This article is provided for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. For guidance on specific legal matters under federal, state, or local laws, please consult with our IP Lawyers.