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In a closely watched copyright-infringement lawsuit, Georgia State University fired back this week at its accusers, three academic publishers that say the institution invites students to illegally download and print readings from thousands of works. The university asserts that its online distribution of course material is permitted under copyright law's fair-use exemption.
The Associated Press said that it will attempt to define clear standards as to how much of its articles and broadcasts bloggers and Web sites can excerpt without infringing on The A.P.’s copyright. The effort to impose some guidelines on the free-wheeling blogosphere, where extensive quoting and even copying of entire news articles is common, may offer a prominent definition of the important but vague doctrine of “fair use,” which holds that copyright owners cannot ban others from using small bits of their works under some circumstances. For example, a book reviewer is allowed to quote passages from the work without permission from the publisher.
PIJIP faculty members work to assure that the copyright fair use doctrine remains vibrant, in both analog and digital contexts. Working closely with AU’s Center for Social Media and a number of non-profit organizations, we seek to explain and promote interpretations of copyright, communications and other laws that protect and facilitate the growth of public media. We applied our fair use initiative to documentary films, user-generated content on participatory Internet platforms, a new media format that can help the public to recognize and understand common social problems.
PIJIP’s work in this area includes developing seminal “Best Practices” guidelines for fair use by non-fiction filmmakers, supporting research on the effects of intellectual property on the practices of media makers, and organizing and convening scholarly conferences.
Frequently Asked Questions on Fair Use (December 2007)By Pat Aufderheide, Peter Jaszi, Maura Ugarte and Michael Miller
Does the Documentary Filmmaker’s Statement of Best Practices actually carry weight with broadcasters and insurance companies? What is the appropriate length of a clip to fair use? Does it matter if you are a non-profit organization vs. a commercial organization? Is fair use stealing? ...and more.
Recut, Reframe, RecycleWhen college kids make mashups of Hollywood movies, are they violating the law? Not necessarily, according to the latest study on copyright and creativity from PIJIP and the AU Center for Social Media. It shows that many uses of copyrighted material in today’s online videos are eligible for fair use consideration.
The Cost of Copyright Confusion for Media LiteracyPIJIP's report shows that the fundamental goals of media literacy education are compromised by unnecessary copyright restrictions. As a result of poor guidance, counterproductive guidelines, and fear, teachers use less effective teaching techniques, teach and transmit erroneous copyright information, fail to share innovative instructional approaches, and do not take advantage of new digital platforms.
In collaboration with the Center for Social Media at the AU School of Communications, this event will discuss the implications of copyright law on the growing use of platforms such as YouTube to facilitate user generated media content. Rappateurs' Report.
This conference will focus on the balance between user and owner rights and interpretations of copyright law that can usefully support the media librarian’s role as a facilitator for the public’s access to audio-visual media.
