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Copyright & Fair Use Basics
Learn the basics of U.S. Copyright law and how to apply fair use to your teaching and research
Scholarly Communication Librarian
General Copyright Resources
- Copyright Crash CourseCopyright information provided by Georgia Harper hosted on the University of Texas Libraries website. Includes sections on fair use, public domain, the TEACH Act and more.
- Copyright GenieTool from the American Library Association that can help you find out if a work is covered by U.S. copyright, calculate its terms of protection and learn about Fair Use and other copyright exceptions
- Copyright in the K-12 ClassroomInformation from UTSA's Education Librarian on copyright considerations for K-12 education.
- Copyright Services for TeachingResources for Faculty from the UTSA Libraries.
- Stanford Copyright & Fair UseStanford University Libraries website covers academic and educational permissions, public domain, fair use and more.
- UTSA Copyright PoliciesUTSA Handbook of Operating Procedures 9.11: Reproduction of Copyrighted Material
Copyright and Images
- Digital Image Rights Computator (DIRC)The Digital Image Rights Computator (DIRC) program is intended to assist
the user in assessing the intellectual property status of a specific image documenting a work of art, a designed object, or a portion of the built environment.
Copyright and Music
- Copyright Basics for MusicThis guide from the University of Illinois Library will point you toward resources to help navigate the complex world of music copyright issues.
- Music Copyright TutorialsCreated by the William & Mary Music Library, these tutorials provide an overview to music copyright for musical compositions and sound recordings.
Fair Use Best Practices by Discipline
- Code of Best Practices in Fair Use for Media Literacy EducationBy the Center for Media & Social Impact at American University, The Media Education Lab at Temple University, and The Program on Information Justice and Intellectual Property, Washington College of Law, American University.
- Code of Best Practices in Fair Use for Online VideoBy the Program on Information Justice and Intellectual Property, Washington College of Law and The Center for Media & Social Impact at American University.
- Code of Best Practices in Fair Use for Scholarly Research in CommunicationCreated by the International Communication Association, funded by the International Communication Association and the Ford Foundation, through the Center for Social Media’s Future of Public Media.
- Code of Best Practices in Fair Use for the Visual ArtsPublished by the College Art Association.
- Documentary Filmmakers’ Statement of Best Practices in Fair UseA handbook written by veteran filmmakers to help other filmmakers understand some instances where using copyrighted material without clearance is considered fair use, and more information such as classroom tools and videos about fair use.
- Society for Cinema and Media Studies’ Statement of Best Practices in Fair Use in Teaching for Film and Media EducatorsA code of best practices in fair use in teaching for film/media educators. It deals with classroom screenings, broadcasts, and derivative works.
- Society for Cinema and Media Studies’ Statement of Fair Use Best Practices for Media Studies PublishingA code of best practices in scholarly publishing, created by the Society for Cinema and Media Studies to serve scholars in film and media studies.
- Statement of Best Practices in Fair Use of Dance-Related MaterialsProduced by the Dance Heritage Coalition, clarifies what librarians, archivists, curators, and others working with dance-related materials currently regard as a reasonable application of the Copyright Act’s fair use doctrine, where the use of copyrighted materials is essential to significant cultural missions and institutional goals.
- Statement on the Fair Use of Images for Teaching, Research, and StudyCreated by the Visual Resources Association.
Orphan Works
- Society of American Archivists. Orphan Works: Statement of Best PracticesAssists in determining effort levels and tools in identifying and locating creators and owners of orphaned works.
- Treatment of Orphan WorksDetailed analysis of what to do after encountering an orphan work in your project from Columbia University.
Books on Copyright
Copy(Write) by ISBN: 9781602352643Publication Date: 2011-09-01"The editors of Copy(write): Intellectual Property in the Writing Classroom bring together stories, theories, and research that can further inform the ways in which we situate and address intellectual property issues in our writing classrooms. The essays in the collection identify and describe a wide range of pedagogical strategies, consider theories, present research, explore approaches, and offer both cautionary tales and local and contextual successes that can further inform the ways in which we situate and address intellectual property issues in our teaching."
Extended Readings on Copyright by Publication Date: 2019Extended Readings on Copyright is subject to a non-commercial Create Commons license that allows you to add, subtract, and amend as you see fit, provided you extend those terms to any derivative work based on these materials and provided your provide appropriate attribution. I encourage you to share your edits and additions with me, but it is not obligatory.Extended Readings on Copyright can be used as a stand alone textbook on United States copyright law. The individual chapters are available on this website, and these can be used to supplement other materials. Individual chapters are likely to be more up to date than the consolidated build of the book.
