Copyright, Creativity, and Generation C
I love podcasts. I have about an hour commute each way on days I go into the office, and I make the trip three times a week. I find myself gravitating to different podcasts depending on my mood (whenever I'm not listening to Taylor Swift on repeat!) One of the shows I keep in my rotation and will give a listen to whenever a title piques my interest is The New York Times The Daily. This show is about 30 minutes and covers different topics every day. The episode from May 23rd is titled "The Supreme Court vs. Andy Warhol"
The summary of this case brought to the Supreme Court is posed around the question
"When is borrowing from an earlier artist an act of inspiration, and when is it theft?" (Adam Liptak, New York Times)
The premise of this case is exploring whether or not Andy Warhol 'transformed' the original photograph by Lynn Goldsmith of Prince. The Courts ruled against Warhol, and claimed copyright infringement. However, "Justice Elena Kagan penning a stinging dissent and arguing that the opinion will “stifle creativity of every sort.” (, CNN Supreme Court Reporter).
You may be wondering why I am so interested in this case in the context of Web 2.0 and Generation "C" (Generation Consumer). The core of this case is focused around copyright, fair use, and transformation of content. How transformed must a piece be in order for it to be considered a new work compared to the original? If Warhol had mirrored his image or turned it upside down, would it then be considered substantially different?
This leads into questions about how this new generation constantly consuming and reimagining content - the produsers - might find themselves in situations where they need to be mindful of intellectual property and fair use. These are questions and topics that don't currently have an answer (that I'm aware of), but may become hot button topics in the future.
Link to the podcast: https://www.nytimes.com/2023/05/23/podcasts/the-daily/supreme-court-andy-warhol.html
Missy,
ReplyDeleteThis is a great topic. It also makes me think of the recent Ed Sheeran case that went his way against the estate of Marvin Gaye. It is my hope that we are teaching our students enough about copyright and plagiarism in schools that we save them the almost guaranteed wave of copyright cases to come. There is so much to understand about copyright and fair use and this is information we need to impart as we teach data literacy. There have already been controversies involving sites like Instagram as to who owns the image once posted. There is a lot that doesn't yet exist in law to protect digital products.
Ooh, I heard a teaser for this podcast the other day. Is it worth the listen? I'm in the midst of some audiobooks, but could potentially take a break.
ReplyDelete