The internet has become a space for bloggers, journalists and consumers alike to contribute to the media agenda(Singer 2007, p. 116). However, online user-generated content is severely limited by copyright law. Copyright law gives exclusive legal rights of ownership to the original creator of a work for a period of time (Australian Copyright Council 2012). Those who infringe the copyright of another are liable to punishment under Commonwealth law.
Simply posting a clip on YouTube could mean you are infringing copyright. For example, a few years ago Canadian bureaucrat Dr Stephen Duckett refused to talk to journalists because he was eating a cookie.
In this first clip we can see “© CTV Edmonton” on the right of the screen. This means that the clip is owned by CTV Edmonton and protected by copyright. An internet user, inspired by the CTV clip, later posted a parody on YouTube.
The second clip is an infringement of copyright law.
In the context of online copyright infringement, how can the law balance the rights of copyright owners with the rights of users? Christou and Maurushat argue that there are various legal defences that users may be able to rely on (2009, p. 2). However, it seems to me that this could be another example of media users being trumped by the omnipresent, copyright owning, media oligopolies.....
References:
Christou, Sophia and Maurushat, Alana, 2009, ‘Waltzing Matilda’ or ‘Advance Australia Fair’? User-Generated Content and Fair Dealing in Australian Copyright Law, Media and Arts Law Review, Vol. 14, No. 1.
Singer, JB 2007, ‘Bloggers and other “participatory journalists”’, in C Friend & JB Singer (eds), Online journalism ethics: traditions and transitions, M.E. Sharpe, Armonk, N.Y., pp. 115–50
Australian Copyright Council 2012, An Introduction to Copyright Law in Australia, accessed online via <http://www.copyright.org.au/find-an-answer/>
Really impressive! Your writing flows really well and you make some very good observations. Your use of referencing is perfect and I like your use of the YouTube clips. You link your ideas into the theme of globalisation really clearly. All in all, this is a nice piece of blogging.
ReplyDeleteThis post touches on the issue of copyright and how it is affected by the use of the media. This then flows into the use of the media in relation to globalisation. I found this to be an interesting and original topic, one that I haven't come across on other blog posts. It is also a well-written post, which I found easy to read and composed well with the use of YouTube clips. I remember when television shows used to be uploaded on YouTube, now if that happens today they are removed immediately because of copyright laws. Definitely shows how strict they have become over the last couple of years.
ReplyDeleteI loved this post! Stephen Duckett sure made himself look like a lunatic. You did well to link the article to scholarly sources and the topic of globalisation. It would have been interesting to examine how copyright law differs from country to country, and the implications that global new media giants such as Youtube have on copyright holders.
ReplyDeleteFirst of all, I like this post because it use a lot of link to support or prove the statement.
ReplyDeleteThe issue of copyright is affective of create the media and it really relative the globalization.
It is a good point and the your written is fluency and easy to flow and catch up!!
Very nice post Hannah, your writing style is effective and fluent, I also thought the topic of your blog was very interesting. You can argue that with today’s new-age social media, there are millions of mobile journalists all around the world. This is affecting copyright and ownership laws and to be honest I think it is only going to get worse. It was a great use of video, which in turn highlighted your points perfectly, all in all very entertaining viewing. Good Job!
ReplyDelete