[Air-L] Air-L Digest, Vol 121, Issue 13

[Ryan S Eanes]

I must have missed the previous inquiry but I wanted to chime in on this 
by providing a link to the Code of Best Practices in Fair Use for Media 
Literacy Education, as provided by American University's Center for 
Media and Social Impact:

http://www.cmsimpact.org/fair-use/best-practices/code-best-practices-fair-use-media-literacy-education

The entire library of fair use codes through CMSI is worth browsing 
through, as well:

http://www.cmsimpact.org/fair-use/best-practices

Profs. Patricia Aufderheide and Peter Jaszi have written a great book 
called Reclaiming Fair Use (more info at 
http://www.cmsimpact.org/reclaiming-fair-use-how-put-balance-back-copyright) 
which explains the embrace of these "codes of best practices" for 
various groups, among other arguments.

I heard Prof. Aufterheide speak on campus here at UO and she made some 
excellent points regarding fair use--she is of the opinion that we have 
tip-toed around fair use for too long as academics, and made the point 
that no academic has ever been successfully prosecuted for using 
materials for educational purposes. Of course, I am not a lawyer, but I 
do agree with the principles that she puts forth.


-- 
Ryan S Eanes
Media Studies PhD Candidate & Graduate Teaching Fellow
University of Oregon School of Journalism & Communication
      1275 University of Oregon, 210 Allen Hall
      Eugene, Oregon 97403-1275
rse at uoregon.edu <mailto:rse at uoregon.edu> . www.ryanean.es

> Andrea Guzman <mailto:aguzma31 at uic.edu>
> August 13, 2014 at 3:45 PM
> Hello all,
>
> This is a response to Shira's question: "If a YouTube video does not have
> any copyright on them, would a screen shot of that video fall under fair
> use for scholarly publications?"
>
> I would say that there is not enough information to make a determination.
> As someone who teaches copyright, and here I am talking about copyright in
> the U.S., one misconception of copyright that I routinely encounter is
> that if there is no copyright mark or claim, then there is no copyright.
> This is false. Copyright attaches once a work is produced and published
> regardless of whether a copyright symbol/claim accompanies it.
>
> Now regarding Fair Use, multiple factors are weighed with one of the chief
> components being how the copyright material is being used. I assume you
> are using it as part of analysis and/or commentary, and this can be
> allowed under Fair Use; however, creative works also tend to have stricter
> protections on them. (Insert standard disclaimer: I am not a lawyer nor do
> I play one while teaching or on the AoIR listserv.)
>
> To add to the resources already provided by others, I also suggest these
> websites:
>
> U.S. Copyright Office: http://copyright.gov
> EFF's FAQ on Fair Use:
> http://www.teachingcopyright.org/handout/fair-use-faq (This is more for
> teaching, but it gives a general overview).
>
> Also, for anyone who wants an interesting read on copyright gone sideways
> I suggest the following: "The $8,000 Mistake that All Bloggers Should
> Beware." Now this example is of a for-profit company, and not germane to
> your question, but it highlights some of the misconceptions of copyright.
> http://www.contentfac.com/copyright-infringement-penalties-are-scary/
>
> Best of luck!
>
> Andrea
>