[Rumori] Fair Use Comic Book

[kembrew mcleod]

Duke Law Prof. James Boyle reminded me that a great new comic book on 
fair use (authored by Boyle, Jennifer Jenkins, and Keith Aoki, who also 
drew the comic) is available starting today.

Begin forwarded message:

> ... Incidentally, tomorrow our comic book goes on sale -- its also 
> available for free online  http://www.law.duke.edu/cspd/comics under a 
> CC license.  Let me know what you think.  J

Here's more info:

Law Professors Release Comic Book on Copyright and Documentary Film

        DURHAM, N.C., March 15 (AScribe Newswire) -- Taking an 
unorthodox approach to teaching law, three law professors have 
collaborated on a comic book that explores the impacts of copyright on 
creativity, and examines both the benefits and costs of copyright in a 
digital age.

        "Bound by Law? Tales from the Public Domain" was co-authored by 
James Boyle, the William Neal Reynolds professor of law at Duke 
University, Jennifer Jenkins, director of Duke's Center for the Study 
of the Public Domain, and Keith Aoki, the Philip H. Knight professor of 
law at the University of Oregon Law School. Aoki also drew the comic, 
which features a classically curved and muscled heroine shooting a 
documentary about a day in the life of New York City.

        While the treatment may be entertaining, the subject matter -- 
threats to cultural history and documentary filmmaking posed by 
"permissions culture" and the erosion of the "fair use" doctrine -- is 
serious. One "tale" described in the comic involves "Eyes on the 
Prize," the great civil rights documentary that was pulled from 
circulation after the filmmakers' rights to music and footage had 
expired. In another real-life situation, a filmmaker is told she has to 
pay $10,000 to clear the rights to the "Rocky" theme song, captured 
incidentally in her footage as a cell phone ring-tone.

        "Many young artists today only experience copyright as an 
obstacle, a source of incomprehensible demands for payment, cease and 
desist letters, legal transaction costs," Boyle said. "This is a shame 
because copyright can be a valuable tool for artists and creators of 
all kinds -- even for those who are trying to share their work without 
charge."

        "Artists often form their impressions about intellectual 
property based on rumors and one-sided sources," Jenkins added. "This 
can lead to self-censorship, restrictive clearance practices and legal 
misunderstandings. We want to give people better information, to 
encourage them to educate themselves further."

        "The ultimate goal is to bring about a more balanced 
intellectual property system that enables artists to protect their 
works, but also ensures the availability of raw materials for future 
creation. That's not just an issue for artists, it's an issue for all 
of us."

        Why a comic book? "We care about the subject and, for some 
strange reason, none of our intended audiences seemed eager to read 
scholarly law review articles," Boyle said. "What's more, there is 
something perverse about explaining a visual and frequently surreal 
reality in gray, lawyerly prose."

        The book will be launched on April 6 at Durham's Full Frame 
Documentary Film Festival. An expanded version, with exclusive textual 
commentary from notable artists and culture critics, will be available 
in bookstores later this year, published by Soft Skull Press.

        "Bound by Law? Tales from the Public Domain" is the first in a 
series of comic books planned by Duke Law School's Center for the Study 
of the Public Domain. A grant from the Rockefeller Foundation funded 
the project, which is published under a Creative Commons license. The 
next comic in the series will deal with music and copyright.

        For more information and to read the comic online, visit 
www.law.duke.edu/cspd/comics.

        - - - -

        CONTACTS: James Boyle can be reached for additional comment at 
919-613-7287 or boyle at law.duke.edu. For media assistance, contact 
Jennifer Jenkins in Duke's Office of News & Communications, 
919-613-7270, jenkins at law.duke.edu.

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http://kembrew.com
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kembrew mcleod
assistant professor
department of communication studies
university of iowa

home contact info:
1037 e. washington st.
iowa city, ia 52240
kembrew-mcleod at uiowa.edu
319-621-4620