Yesterday, I briefly took on the role of “Judge Mark” when one blogger in this community called me to express concern that another had plagiarized the first blogger’s work. I listened to the story and decided the best approach would be to call the blogger accused of stealing the other’s work, to see if the problem could be resolved. In the end, I suggested the best thing to do would be for the first blogger to contact the second, to explain concerns and clear the air. By day’s end, the two bloggers had communicated and the plagiarizing blogger removed the offending material.
(I’m using some awkward English writing here because I don’t want to identify either blogger, even to the point of indicating any one’s gender.)
It turns out the plagiarizer just didn’t understand the rules of the game. Many people in the Internet space think that information is free, and should be distributed or shared equally freely, and in principal this applies most of the time, if you are fair, straightforward, and properly attribute the borrowed information. While copyright rules apply as much to the Internet as to other media, sometimes you can copy first while requesting permission, and not be in real trouble, because if the other person is in any ways offended, you can remove or revise the posting right away. (Try this with a book or newspaper article, and you can see the problems when the damage cannot be undone easily.)
There is another reason for attributing source material fairly and obtaining permission if you wish to use significant amounts of the other person’s work. You will build and enhance your relationships and network with a respectful attitude. But you will do even more for your cause by communicating with and inviting comments from the other person, adding to their reputation, while enhancing your own.
The converse applies of course if the matter is negative. I’m not going to identify the bloggers who I talked with today. This sort of publicity won’t help anyone. The issue raised here is important enough to receive some attention, however.
Here are some ground rules for when and how to copy others’ work.
- You can quote or comment on others’ material, in reasonable volume, provided you attribute it fairly. (It is often wise to hyperlink to the site which you are referencing.)
- You can generally hyperlink freely. In this case you aren’t actually using the content, but just directing people to the content-provider’s way. In any case, hyperlinks are valuable gifts to the recipient’s search engine rankings, so they will be pleased, as a rule, with your attention.
- If you are using images, make sure the work is yours, you are certain the images are public domain or are granted free usage rights (most Wikipedia images fit into this category) or you pay for the rights. You can often obtain extremely inexpensive images through services such as istockphoto.com.
- If you wish to borrow or use substantial bodies of another person’s work (the amount depends on context) you should request and receive permission and oblige any requests not to publish or use the material.
These points I think cover the basics. If you have any questions or thoughts about online copyright, please feel free to comment or question me. I’m glad we were able to solve yesterday’s problem quickly and preserve good-will all around.
