Easegill pointed to this video this on Twitter which offers an intriguing twist on the notions of piracy and innovation.
Essentially, the argument is: without a certain amount of piracy, i.e., law breaking, our culture would stagnate--creativity, new ideas, new social and economic opportunities would be less likely to occur. [How edupunk is that?]
Let's face it, the movie industry would not exist without piracy, nor would the United States of America. Following the rules is something we learn early in our developmental years. We need these rules to make sense out of the world. Yet, once we begin to gain consciousness of ourselves and the different rules that shape society and culture, "interesting" things are sure to follow.
One of my favorite stages of human development are the "Why?" years. Parents and teachers learn to address this boundless curiosity with a number of strategies, some of which teach kids to stop questioning and merely accept things as the way they are, regardless of why they are the way they are.
My favorite part of college during my early years was when I had a professor who would re-introduce "Why?" Why do we believe what we believe? Why does language have such an impact on how we see the world? Why are you studying poetry? [That last comment was from my parents.]
When I think of piracy, the metaphor churns up more than movie-friendly swashbucklers. The first thing that comes to mind is the notion of stealing valuable goods and taking control of other people's property. I think the word I'm looking for is "stealing." Piracy in this sense smacks of a rather sordid affair. So it seems it's one thing to break a rule and it's another to steal something which is not rightfully yours. (See this related article regarding a study commissioned by Microsoft "that aims to quantify the economic impact of piracy on related small businesses in the software ecosystem and identifies sales of software licenses to pirates as a key economic opportunity for small vendors.")
Stealing ideas, now here's where things get exceptionally dicey.
The mash-up has been in existence since the beginning of recorded time. People have been combining ideas, lyrics, melodies, and images for centuries, creating truly some of the most important inventions, music, and ideas we as a civilization have ever known. So, given the useful tools for appropriating information, sounds, images, and ideas, when is stealing illegal anymore? Copyright laws were designed to protect both creators and users of information, but who is out there enforcing these laws when the scale of appropriation is simply beyond the scope of control? And what about what we're teaching kids and educators in schools about appropriating content? Are we teaching about "fair use," or other copyright uses and responsibilities? My guess is those ethical and legal considerations are being swept under the rug.
So, is the issue that of stealing or are we operating from a set of rules that can no longer be enforced? I find the question almost as delicious as the possible solutions!
Image: Howard Pyle -- Walking the Plank.
Keywords: computing, copyright, educational technology, edupunk, ethics, fair use, innovation, intellectual property, learning, legal, piracy, teaching, theft
Comments
When I was in full-time education, at school and university, copyright was anathema to me. I'm still not a huge fan of it, despite recently co-authoring some resources for interactive whiteboards that have gone on sale. As the main breadwinner for our family, however, copyright has a part to play in our survival!
That's why I love Open Source and Creative Commons. It allows people to freely distribute things whilst still getting the credit for them. We should certainly be teaching that in schools. I know I'm trying to. :-)
Chris,
Awesome post, your fnal question really frames the whole dillemma beautifully. I am fascinated by this very topic, and I started reading some pretty interesting historical/literary analysis of Pirate narratives. One in particular by Mrcus Rediker titled "Villians of All Nations" frames the issues along similar lines, although conceptualizing the space of Pirates as somehow extra-national, and a force towards an alternative, equitable multi-national order. I love this kind of stuff.
This is definitely an important issue. Creative Commons has become a great concept and has opened up many options and opportunities for sharing intellectual property. Students do need to be taught the rules for intellectual property just like they must be taught about physicial property. There are times when physical property is meant to be shared (treats left in the middle of the staff room table) vs. not meant to be shared (the lunch in a staff refrigerator). Intellectual property is the same.
The problem is that most educators don't really understand the rules and often break them themselves. Here are some resources I've learned about recently that may help the confused and misinformed.
http://groups.diigo.com/groups/Ad4dcss
http://www.centerforsocialmedia.org/resources/publications/fair_use_in_onli
http://www.mediaeducationlab.com/index.php?page=265
Hey Christopher,
Excellent post and that video is a great find. I've been thinking about this issue quite often - navigating the terrain that exists between inspiration, appropriation, and theft is a pretty big part of teaching art. One of my colleagues used to do a great lesson comparing Picasso's works to Millet's, and it becomes clear that some of his most celebrated work is either stolen - or appropriated - depending on your point of view, right off the canvas of his contemporaries. I was really taken with this article, <a href="http://www.harpers.org/archive/2007/02/0081387">The Ecstacy of Influence</a> in Harpers Magazine by Jonathan Lethem (and discussed its implications for education <a href="http://carrotrevolution.blogspot.com/2007/02/plagairism-and-posmodernism.htm">here</a>). In the same way that the youtube video discusses the modern history of piracy, Lethem's article traces it back much further into the roots of art history. I think basically what it comes down to, is that the difficulty in identifying inspiration/tribute/coincidence/plagiarism/theft isn't anything new, its just so much more ubiquitous in the digital age.