Much of the unprecedented economic growth of the past 10 years can actually be
credited to the doctrine of fair use, as the Internet itself depends on the
ability to use content in a limited and nonlicensed manner. To stay on the edge of innovation and
productivity, we must keep fair use as one of the cornerstones for creativity,
innovation, and, as today’s study indicates, an engine for growth for our
country.
Ed Black
Fair Use Worth More to Economy Than Copyright, CCIA Says
President and CEO of CCIA.
September 12, 2007
[I’ve been doing some research into “fair use“. For the obvious reasons.
There may be other options as well as those I have seen discussed. I’ll report back if I find anything “interesting”.–Joe]
Clayton Cramer has announced that he’s probably going to shut his blog, because of legal threats related to copyright issues.
Fair Use is essentially the cornerstone of the “new media” in grassroots politics. These suits by the unnamed Vegas paper are well aimed to set a dangerous precedent that would severely stifle, if not cripple, independent political analysis and commentary by anyone other than the MSM or the major political parties. We see this already with Clayton Cramer dropping out of blogging completely. Whether this happens because they actually are able to win in court, or because of intimidation from the threat of a blogger having to defend himself against a large federal lawsuit because one sentence in a post happens to be similar to a sentence in a newspaper article, the effect will be the same.
With suits like this, the newspaper, with their corporate resources, wins even if they lose in court, because the small independent blogger will find himself massively in debt from the attorney’s fees needed to defend himself.
I have to wonder if that’s part of their objective.