A very famous line from a movie says it better than I ever could. The objects of this statement shall remain unnamed (actually there are several I could point it at...) but more specifically two people today that for some reason just can't seem to understand that plagiarism and copyright infringement are simply WRONG no matter what your "defense."
Both people have posted content that they received via email forward (or so they say) and therefore that some how makes it "fair game." Well, I for one am simply shocked at the lack of integrity that exists here on Gather. Even my 5-year-old knows it is wrong to take things that aren't yours and even worse to then lie about it and pretend you didn't do anything wrong once you get caught. Yes, he throws a fit/tantrum almost every time he gets disciplined for something HE DID WRONG, but I expect that from him, he's FIVE. I don't expect it from my fellow gatherites, but then again maybe my expectations are just too high.
So, I guess I should lower my expectations and just EXPECT people to be thieves and liars and then maybe I won't be so disappointed. No, I think I will instead keep speaking out against this issue and if that makes me MEAN or unbecoming of a Christian, well, then, I guess I will just have to be "mean" and step out of my "Jesus" suit for a minute while I continue to stand up for what I believe. Last time I checked though, "Thou Shalt Not Steal" was still high up on Jesus' list of things not to do, so I bet He'll side with me. Granted He probably would do it in a kinder way, but then again the money changers found in the temple didn't expect His righteous indignation either.
Attached you will find a comment of mine recently deleted within seconds of it being posted... at least if you are going to copyright infringe... do it with pride!
Oh, and Kevin... I expect my first-ever drama badge... pretty please!?!
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Comments: 71 ( 1 removed by Heidi Cole )
You are so right! You go, girl, and don't give up standing for what you believe is right and true.
I am also shocked at the nonchalant attitude so many Gather members have about posts and photos that are lifted from somewhere off the internet and published here on Gather. What other reason do they do that except for the attention and points? It is stealing, and it just amazes me at how they don't seem to understand that.
While I agree with the general premise of your post, I also think that it might be somewhat harshly presented (don't hit me!).
There are many members that do not have the experience in an online community to have gained knowledge of "fair use" and copyright...especially as it pertains to the free-wheeling inner world of email forwards. Therefore, while technically some members are 'stealing' content, I think there is a significant learning curve that a little education can easily address.
Oh, and thanks for my badge! I am no longer a drama virgin!
Does she mean STFU or is she just messing around? An explanation would be really helpful. The internet makes words confusing. I don't know the tone of her voice.
What Kevin said makes a lot of sense. That not everyone knows or understands the rules of copyright as well as they need to. And it isn't their fault. The line is drawn differently everywhere on the net.
Plenty of people confuse education and constructive criticism for being "mean". Once again, it is hard to understand HOW someone is saying something when you can't hear them, only read what they wrote. Many assumptions are made and plenty are incorrect in what they assume.
That is the problem here. The people here who post things that are not theirs are making money from the work of other people. It's not a lot but is it money that really shouldn't be allowed to be made?
If I wrote a stupid e-mail to someone and it became a hit and was passed along everywhere on the internet, then I found out that someone was profiting off of it somewhere like here it would absolutely bother me.
Most of the time it is "fair game".
Here's an example of how the takedown procedures would work:
1. Alice puts a copy of Bob's song on her AOL-hosted website.
2. Bob, searching the Internet, finds Alice's copy.
3. Charlie, Bob's lawyer, sends a letter to AOL's designated agent (registered with the Copyright Office) including:
1. contact information
2. the name of the song that was copied
3. the address of the copied song
4. a statement that he has a good faith belief that the material is not legal
5. a statement that, under penalty of perjury, Charlie is authorized to act for the copyright holder
6. his signature
4. AOL takes the song down.
5. AOL tells Alice that they have taken the song down.
6. Alice now has the option of sending a counter-notice to AOL, if she feels the song was taken down unfairly. The notice includes
1. contact information
2. identification of the removed song
3. a statement under penalty of perjury that Alice has a good faith belief the material was mistakenly taken down
4. a statement consenting to the jurisdiction of Alice's local US Federal District Court, or, if outside the US, to a US Federal District Court in any jurisdiction in which AOL is found.
5. her signature
7. AOL then waits 10-14 business days for a lawsuit to be filed by Bob.
8. If Bob does not file a lawsuit, then AOL may put the material back up.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/OCILLA
The website even states that the photos are by this specific photographer and that the photos are FOR SALE and not FOR STEAL... I am not saying that the two people who posted these photos intentionally set out TO STEAL them, but ignorance of the law doesn't mean that the law doesn't still apply. Just because someone sent an email (where the photos were originally used inappropriately) and it got forwarded a million times doesn't mean that the millionth use of these images is any less copyright actionable as the initial illegal use. I would be interested to see what the photographer thinks about someone posting these images with no credit to her, nor her permission to post them in the first place.
You need to remove the title of the article in your photo capture also. Merely removing the name of the offender isn't going to stop people from tracking the article. Otherwise just post the title and name in a link here... which is probably against TOS. lol
And as far as all of the questionable content on Gather --- I know there is a lot. I call it like it is when I see it. I am not on here 24-7, but if I find something that is so blatantly a rip-off I will say something. I only hope others would do the same for me if they found my artwork being stolen.
How can they beef if they aren't aware their content is being stolen?
If someone said something to me I would take it down. Tactful would be best...If they were rude right off the bat I would be offended if it was an honest mistake.
"Hey, I don't know if you know this but this is copyrighted material" would have me apologizing my butt off, and I would fix the error immediately.
Oooh how's that for maturity! Snap. I am so put in my place with that one. Isn't it nice when miss manners resorts to "witty" one liners?
I am still at a loss for the fact that this is "an adult centered website" with so many "adults" who think it's perfectly fine to make money off of some other person's creation.
That is the point.
You may be an artist who doesn't care about profit, but talk to professional authors once and they will say the same thing I am...and I can point you to a few who have taken people online to court for posting on forums their work.
Loclynn.com
Gather management has said, as you quoted, that this is a self policing site. So noticing and reporting images/articles that have been taken from elsewhere and posted is what they apparently WANT us to do.
Congratulations on your drama badge.
and downloading movies/games/music is called Pirating.
I agree with you 100%. I think we all know it is wrong. And you said the photos were from a site that specifically said not to steal them! WOW, brave ones to lift them anyway.
I don't think you are whining. Gather is every Gatherites biz so you have every right to speak up when you see the TOS being ignored as well as laws being broken.
I guess you figured out what STFU means! Glad you didn't STFU.
Heidi, you sound like someone that believes in God and tries to live your life in honesty. However, judgement is NOT yours to make. Instead of passing judgement, you should be spending your time helping people understand copyrights. Instead of be harsh, you should be kind and work with others.
As for the rest of you, you gave her all the points she intended to again by making people mad with her judgemental and harsh conversation starters. Next time ignore her and go about your day as if she said nothing at all.
Thanks for posting this Heidi, and thanks for being so vocal about this. Copyrights are alive and well, and writers and artists and publishers are concerned about infringement, especially on the internet.
And Marilyn M. is right, you are wrong about just giving credit to someone. You actually have to have either THEIR permission or the PUBLISHER's permission to repost an article. Yes, authors want their name out there, but copyright law also covers who can distribute these works.
Not all of us are thieves and liars. Sometimes people make mistakes. I hope for your sake when you do that you're treated kindly and given a chance to correct the wrong.
E3
Again, I don't know what set all this off . I can only tell you for sure that copyright is a very serious matter . And again-- it means a lot to me when someone passes along my work . My pay in a situation like this ( i.e., technically unpaid ) is recognition and respect --just ( as they say ) spell my name right. Yours truly, Lonnie Ray Fowler
Name the religion that claims stealing is okay with their god(s.) Nope. Can't do it.
Stealing is wrong. This is part of the collective-knowing that is unanimous. We all know that taking credit for someone else's work is wrong.
Now. it takes a spirit an extra amount of brave to speak out.
I applaud those who speak out.
Ergo...
Clap!
You're right. They're thieves.
Call 'em on it.
Pretty simple. (and I like simple.)
Wilka
You stick to your guns, Heidi. I'm glad to know there are others who believe this way still. Of course, those of us who take the Bible seriously do still know the difference between right and wrong.
Of course, now that you have brought the Bible into it, someone will come along and accuse us of being "self-righteous"... or "holier-than-thou"... or judgmental... because apparently being a Christian means you can't speak out against something someone is doing since it might hurt their feelings... right?!? LOL
This comment is to let you know that this content has reached at least ten comments, and as such has been removed from Comment Speedway! Congratulations!
Based on the vicious responses you have received here, I guess you hit a nerve. Good for you, girl. If I did this, and didn't know about it as Kevin says, then, let me know, and I would graciously admit it. You missed the whole flying pig routine. Someone jokingly wrote that I had stolen the pig. I took it seriously, and went on a campaign of asking forgiveness, until the joking culprit told me it was a joke. The pig was fair game.
I'm jealous of your award. I like that one for me. Kevin, did you get that. Check out my next article on Nancy Pelosi and maybe I'll get one. : }
Often, I think that they have found something that they really want to share and do not know the proper way.
I have changed how I go about alerting users of possible violations. See, I can be teachable too. All I ask is that people act like adults and admit a mistake when they make one.
Oh, and as to your statement about finding something that they really want to share and don't know the proper way... I actually disagree with this. Most of the people breaking copyright laws are point whoring. All of the email forwards, the news articles that they copy and paste and write no additional commentary of their own, etc... Most everything can be used if they would follow the fair use guidelines and then ADD something original to it. But, I think a lot of people want the easy way to earn points. Copying and pasting someone else's stuff is much easier than coming up with your own content... Anyway...
If it doesnt belong to you or you dont know if it is public domain then DONT use it...this isnt rocket science folks.
Not only is posting work that isn't yours a potential copyright infringement, I never really understood the enjoyment of it. Sure, it probably earns you more points, but this is all without the satisfaction that you wrote/made the content yourself. I see nothing overtly wrong with sharing if you know for sure it is public domain, but it just seems rather pointless to me. Maybe I have this perspective because I have always been a creative sort of person who loves to work, but the reason I am like that is because of the feeling of accomplishment you get afterwords. It's a feeling that seems to matter less and less to people now adays... sad.
I suppose some of these people who make a practice of this copying and pasting are desparate for money, so they want more points they can convert to more cash/gift cards. I still don't see that as a valid excuse if you're not authorized to publish it on your own. Furthermore, you're just making it harder for yourself in the long run.
Agree completely! My favorite part of creating something is sitting and looking at it afterwards. I don't even need other people's "admiration" of my work... it is satisfying just knowing that I painted it or wrote it or whatever. Even God, after each day of creation sat back and admired His work... and he said, "It is good."
And the dishonest people can't ever fool themselves. That's the thing about copying and pasting someone else's work... the comments don't really belong to you, they belong to the original creator of it. You can fool people some of the time, but you can't ever truly LIE to yourself!