<p>DS has a nice article about him and an activity he was involved in that was printed in a journal, including a piece he authored. He wanted to include it in a couple of select apps since it directly relates to his biggest EC. Our printer died in a cloud of smoke, so he took it to the local shop who refused to copy because of copywrite. I confess I know absolutely nothing about this, and assumed that he could include a copy and would have done so if not given a heads up by the local shop. There is also a newspaper article about him and an EC that he copied previously at home and wanted to include. I guess this sounds naive, but having no experience in this area my question is whether he has to get permission from the journal and newspaper to make copies to include in his apps. Writing it out like this makes me realize that it makes sense that he would need permission, but it's not something I've thought about before. Can anyone advise?</p>
<p>Just a question; if the article is online, can't he just refer to it via a hyperlink or website address on his app?</p>
<p>I don't understand why the printer wouldn't copy the article.
There's no problem with including it in applications. Older S did that when he applied to college.</p>
<p>Better to do that than to hyperlink it because I doubt that busy admissions officers would have the time to check the on-line link.</p>
<p>Just copy the article yourself at a place like Kinkos or at a friend's house.</p>
<ol>
<li><p>Technically, this kind of use would be a copyright violation. I have never, ever heard of anyone raising it, though, and I am stunned that a local copy shop wouldn't make a few copies for you. That's what copiers are for! (Really, I can't believe that Kinko's has gotten religion on this.)</p></li>
<li><p>If you want to do it the right way, and you only need a few copies to send to schools, why not buy a few copies of the journal and cut out the pages?</p></li>
</ol>
<p>First off, it's "copyright" (the legal "right" to "copy") -- I'm not generally into correctly others' spelling, but in this case it might help you if you want to search for authoritative answers.
Northstarmom, the print company employee who refused to make photocopies of a journal article was well within his/her right; printers typically don't retain counsel to determine a customer's copyright privileges and the printer could be legally liable for violating copyright. The journal's publisher likely owns the copyright -- journals charge for reprints, which is the accepted legal way to distribute an article for commercial use.
That said, we're undoubtedly looking at "fair use" here (not commercial use), so making photocopies for the purpose of including with college apps isn't likely to result in copyright infringement charges. Just do the photocopying yourself.
Personally, I applaud the printer's policy. I get p****d off when "respectable" people -- often teachers -- routinely photocopy copyrighted material for mass distribution, usually without so much as an attribution. What message does this convey to students about ethical use of intellectual property. Bah, humbug.</p>
<p>sorry, JHS and I cross-posted; JHS's reply is calmer and more reasonable than mine, but essentially we agree.</p>
<p>Thanks for the help everyone and sorry about the spelling - it's obvious we're babes in the woods on this matter but we want to do it the right way. I was happy the local shop pointed this out to me actually, and wasn't upset with them in the least. </p>
<p>So it's okay if we make 2 or 3 copies ourselves? The problem with buying a few and cutting them out is that it was just published in another country in Dec. and they sent him one copy - obtaining others at this point will take some time.</p>
<p>To clarify a few things. First, I don't think that it's a problem to make a few copies of this article. BUT, yeah, technically it sounds like a copyright infringement. The publisher of the article owns the copyright. Second, I don't think this is a fair use exception. Just because it's not commercial does NOT mean it's fair use. Fair use is one of the most misunderstood and over-applied legal doctrines ever. </p>
<p>JHS is right -- if possible, the absolute cleanest way to do this is to buy several copies of the journal and clip the article. No problem there. The second best way is to simply contact the publisher and ask for permission to copy the article -- for this, I would be very surprised if the journal declined permission -- there should be some fine print in the journal that talks about reprints and how to ask for permission. </p>
<p>Finally, if all else fails -- I really wouldn't worry about it. It would be a very agressive journal publisher who would pursue this.</p>
<p>Honestly, no journal is going to sue you over what you're planning to do. The people they'd sue are people who do things like make hundreds of copies and then pass them out to students instead of having the students buy the publication.</p>
<p>"no journal is going to sue you" -- absolutely true. That's not really the problem, though, is it? If you photocopy an article and include it with a college application, the adcom just might (long shot, but might!) take offense. Many of us in publishing do notice and do question such ethics (particularly editors who spend much of their day chasing down permissions). Also, if there happens to be art (photography, etc.) in the article, chances are the publication does NOT own that copyright; artists and photographers often sell first rights only and retain copyright of their work -- occasionally a photographer will find his/her work reproduced in some unauthorized manner and will sue -- more a matter of artistic control than corporate profit.</p>
<p>
[quote]
BUT, yeah, technically it sounds like a copyright infringement. The publisher of the article owns the copyright. Second, I don't think this is a fair use exception. Just because it's not commercial does NOT mean it's fair use. Fair use is one of the most misunderstood and over-applied legal doctrines ever.
[/quote]
</p>
<p>lderochi, you're certainly right that noncommercial use isn't automatically fair use, and also that interpretations vary widely. With the information flood we're all drowning in, this can only get worse. The conventional way to judge fair use is to consider the much-touted "four fair use factors":</p>
<p>
[quote]
What is the character of the use?</p>
<p>What is the nature of the work to be used?</p>
<p>How much of the work will you use?</p>
<p>What effect would this use have on the market for the original or for permissions if the use were widespread?
[/quote]
</p>
<p>I suggested that photocopying an article in which the student himself was named, and distributing those few copies to individuals (not for republication), probably constitutes fair use (character of use is personal, nature of use is published fact, nil effect on market for the original here). But I'm just a working editor, not an attorney or a judge. Point is, if we search the literature we find decisions all over the map. I'm guessing this would be considered fair use and OP can safely make the copies, but a commercial copy shop (e.g., Kinkos) cannot.</p>
<p>The purpose you have is "fair use" and there is therefore no copyright violation. The local shop you took it to was being extra cautious and actually has a different issue than you do. The shop would be copying those full articles to make money -- what it charges you for the copy -- and having such a "profit" purpose can take the activity out of fair use.</p>
<p>
[quote]
The purpose you have is "fair use" and there is therefore no copyright violation.
[/quote]
The main reason we can't state this unequivocably goes back to fair use factor #3: how much of the work is used. OP is copying 100% of the article, whereas fair use is often defined in court as anything between 1% and 10%. But the other 3 factors mitigate.</p>
<p>On this one, I will stick by my unequivocal view.</p>
<p>"no journal is going to sue you" -- absolutely true. That's not really the problem, though, is it? If you photocopy an article and include it with a college application, the adcom just might (long shot, but might!) take offense. "</p>
<p>I highly doubt that any admissions officer would take offence. Heck, I'm in publishing (journalism) and would not take offense if someone did that with something I'd written or had taken from the nonprofit community newspaper that I'm on the board of.</p>
<p>northstarmom, I'm curious -- are you a Brit (or Canadian)? Clue: "offence"</p>
<p>Nope, I'm not a Brit, but my dad, a West Indian, was originally a British citizen, so I can blame my occasional Britishisms on his influence, not the fact that I'm a bad speller.</p>
<p>Ah! I'm Canadian and sometimes slip too. Last year my youngest kid's teacher was Canadian (in a Cal. school) and taught the kids to use Brit spelling and punctuation -- commas outside of closed quotes and such. She refused to believe she was (relatively) wrong, and got really annoyed when I tried coaxing her to switch. I hope the kids learned something about cultural relativity.</p>
<p>There's no way this is fair use, although it's noncommercial: The whole work is being used, for its original purpose (i.e., informing people about the subject's activity), absolutely replacing potential sales. There's no additional value being added (e.g., satire, commentary). </p>
<p>That doesn't mean that anyone would sue you for this -- even the statutory minimum damages wouldn't justify a lawsuit for sending a few copies to admissions officers, and this isn't anyone's concern. It's "tolerated use", yes, but not within the terms of any fair use doctrine I recognize.</p>
<p>
[quote]
DS has a nice article about him and an activity he was involved in that was printed in a journal, including a piece he authored. He wanted to include it in a couple of select apps since it directly relates to his biggest EC. ....There is also a newspaper article about him and an EC that he copied previously at home and wanted to include.
[/quote]
</p>
<ol>
<li><p>Your son owns the copyright to the piece that he authored, unless he sold his rights to the journal (which would have entailed receiving money and signing a very detailed statement). So as to the "piece he authored" -- he may copy and distribute that as much as he wants.</p></li>
<li><p>It is highly unlikely that copying the article(s) "about him" for inclusion as an exhibit within a confidential application package could be seen as a copyright violation... however, there is a very simple solution to eliminate any possible concern. That is for your son to simply email the authors of the articles and thank them for their kind comments, and then request their permission to copy the articles for submission with his college apps. As noted above, in most cases the author retains copyright ownership. 99 times out of 100 the author will be delighted and be very willing to give permission. (I am an editor of a small commercial publication and associated web site.... and I am always asking authors for reprint permission, and they always give it freely and never ask for money). Writing to the author to thank them and compliment them for the article is a nice idea in any case -- people who write love to hear positive feedback from readers. [**I know it is late in the process. Your son can probably get away with copying & sending before he hears back from the authors, since it is such a good bet that they will feel flattered and say yes. Not recommended, but the point is, the way "around" copyright is simply to get permission, and permission can be given after the fact as well as before]</p></li>
<li><p>With all that being said, be careful not to overdo it in the clippings. Short articles are fine -- but the ad com is not likely to read lengthy or redundant articles. So while I don't think copyright is the major barrier, the fact that there is so much copying needed that your son saw fit to ask someone else to do it for him (rather than stand over the Xerox machine himself), may be an indication that he is overdoing it.</p></li>
</ol>
<p>If I sat on a jury and the publisher sued the person who was an object of the article for reprinting it, the publisher would have no chance. </p>
<p>The article is about "him".</p>