Perhaps it is because I have just covered in my classes use of images and the wealth of material available through Creative Commons licensing, so the topic of copyright is near the surface of my mind, but I noticed something today on Facebook that happens all too often. I know I have done it, and you probably have, too, without even being aware of it.
I’m talking about sharing links on social media without first taking the time to check that they are ours to share.
What caught my attention was a wonderful cartoon about “Vintage Social Networking,” shared on Facebook by a friend via another friend.
I wanted to share the image on my Facebook page, too, so I went to the page of the “via” friend to see where it came from. The cartoon is carefully drawn and didn’t seem like something that would be clipart or a royalty free stock image. When I couldn’t find any source, I did a quick Google search, which immediately led me to the blog of cartoonist John Atkinson. His latest post is this:
I am now a happy subscriber to Atkinson’s blog and am glad to have stumbled upon his work, but I never would have heard of him without a couple minutes of sleuthing because the cartoon that first got my attention had the bottom website and copyright information cropped out. Here is his original version:
Interestingly, I found in my web searching that I’m not the first person to notice the misuse of this particular cartoon or to use it as an example. See this good piece on “Facebook Image Sharing and Copyright.”
Atkinson carefully explains on his blog his policy for sharing his creations. Creative Commons allows artists of all kinds to be generous with their work, but I am aware more than ever that we all have an important responsibility to be careful not to abuse their gifts in our rush to share the shiny and new.
I, for one, am trying to do better.
I’ve never really noticed or thought about this topic. It’s certainly eye-opening to think about!
Makes you really wonder about Pinterest though…. I mean, when we ‘share’ things on facebook, and ‘pin’ things on pinterest, are we so much ‘stealing’ images, more-so than just sharing things in a way that says “I agree!” or “I like this!”? I understand the idea of copyright infringement, but it makes me wonder if the concept of copyrights might be going the way of the cassette tape…. (In a slower way, perhaps…..)
Saydde, I agree that it’s a fascinating and complex area. I haven’t been on Pinterest much, so I can’t say much about it. I guess my take-away is that at least I can be careful when there is a clear copyright involved, such as for the cartoon. I do worry that, as a society, we’ll just throw our hands up and not take as much care as we should, when we can. It’s hard enough to make a living as a writer or other kind of artist.
The big picture of it all is beyond me at the moment. 🙂
Hi Lisa
Thank you for referencing my post regarding copyright when it comes to sharing on social networks.
It’s definitely something that needs to be addressed more often, and I’m glad you made the effort to find the real author of Vintage Social Networking, like I did.
It would be great if everyone showed a little respect for artists and creators of any kind (including blog posts).
Cheers,
Angelique Duffield
Bright Spark Media