Copyright+and+Fair+Use

Copyright and Fair Use Conquering Copyright Confusion 2:30 PM – 3:30 PM Session #CL24

Fair use laws depend on context and situation. Fair use comes in to play when the benefit to society out weights the benefit to the artist.

Context and situation are important. It is a judgement call- remember the guidelines are only that- guidelines.

If you have repurposed this becomes fair use.

See a discussion of the Fair Use Act from the Center for Social Media at this link: []

Case Study: Coffee table book maker wanted images of Grateful Dead- they were denied- went to court and they were approved because they repurposed the images. Images once used for publicity were repurposed for historic documentation.

Creative Commons content- collected free use materials but can be limited. Do we allow students to use other sources? If so how much and in what ways? What about sites like Flickr- are we asking students to check for sources?

It is a judgement call and it is up to the educator to avoid simply playing it safe.

Now it is suggested to use the Code of Best Practice- designed to replace Fair Use Guidelines which were not the law but were interpreations of the law. You can find examples of the Code of Best Practice in action at the Center for Social Media website above. (Media literacy experts banded together to create the code of best practices and fair use for best practices in media education.) If you are using media in your classroom then you need to teach media literacy. Teach kids how to exercise their rights to fair use.

Fair use is flexible and dynamic- favors transformative practice and is part of the copywrite act of 1976. Some frequently asked questions about fair use can be found here: [] Four concepts to remember per the speaker- Nature- Purpose- Effect – Amount [] a lawyer addresses copyright issues

Suggested resources: [] Fair Use Scenarios for discussion [] Teaching About Copyright from the Media Literacy Center at Temple

Also an excellent compilation of resources from Camille regarding instructional technology and copyright issues can be found at: http://instructionaltechnologyforeducators.wikispaces.com/