Thursday, May 31, 2012

WK 1 - Response to Debbie Patsel


Debbie,

I too found that short little history clip very disturbing.  I also checked my film archives.  However, this just adds to the questions that still remain.  Even if you pay $400.00 for a DVD and we dare to share this DVD with our classroom audience, are we violating copyright law?  As I understand it, under Fair Use, you might be able to get away with clips and only if your lesson could be taught no other way.  If all these criteria fit, then you need to go through the “process” to determine Fair Use. 

Throughout my many years teaching, I have always used film and music in the classroom.  I have a large collection of which I thought I could choose from.  I purchased them, I can teach with them.  Is that not true of novels?   Why not films?  The area remains very grey… Which leads me to believe the ground is fertile ground for litigation… (Dum, Dum Dum)…. Oops… Is that copyrighted?



Original Posting:

MAC: Week 1, Reading: Copyright Issues, The Fog Clears

I am excited about this class and glad that we are covering copyright in depth. We have hit on this topic briefly in the program, but it was never truly defined resulting in mixed results with my cohorts’ projects. I have just tried to keep it simple and I limited myself with Microsoft Office clip art because that usage seemed clear to me. Having watched the videos, the fog has cleared and I have a much better grasp of the entire copyright issue.

What I find most interesting and potentially frightful is the cultural impact that Copyright and Fair Use might have on society. I was concerned and upset about the explanation of the use of the Martin Luther King Jr. documentary, “Eyes on the Prize”; that it has been prohibited to be shown or preserved because of copyright laws and some people want to make a profit off of it. I agree with the commentators that this eventually comes down to censorship of history by making it private property. Individuals that want to make a profit cannot bind history, the greater good and evolution of a society depends on freedom of expression and the writing of histories’ stories. I am glad that there are groups that are fighting to preserve the rights of people to express themselves and make documentaries, thus improving our democracy.

I went to YouTube and found out that the clip we watched is old and it is on DVD and has been aired on PBS. I know that I have two of the DVD’s that are pictured in the film. I also went to Amazon, but the price is about $400.00 for the DVD. The film is available, but still out of reach. The debate continues and people persevere fighting the fights for making history accessible.

Sources: Microsoft Office Clip Art, MP900427695jpg: Eyes on the Fair Use of the Prize, YouTube, Uploaded by mediathatmatters on May 4, 2007
Posted by technoclown (aka) Debra Patsel at 11:35 AM


http://technoclown.blogspot.com/2012/05/week-1-reading-copyright-issues-fog.html?showComment=1338525323723#c2764650831275035368 

No comments:

Post a Comment