Opinion & Commentary

Making new expressions from the same facts – copyright, music, and Pi.

by mslevine May 16, 2013

Yes, that’s pi as in 3.14. One of the frequent questions that comes up in my work involves confusion over whether facts and data are subject to US Copyright: they are not. Original expressions or arrangements of facts can, however, be subject to copyright protection. A recent case helps make the distinction clear – and ...

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Banned Books Week: On Publishing and Censorship

by Meredith Kahn October 2, 2012

This post was written by Emily Hamstra, Learning Librarian at the Shapiro Undergraduate Library, in celebration of Banned Books Week. During Banned Books Week, we spend a lot of time talking about organizations and individuals who pull books from the shelves of schools, libraries, bookstores, and homes. We don’t spend a lot of time talking ...

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Fake Publishers, Real Humor

by Meredith Kahn March 9, 2012

In honor of @FakeElsevier hitting the benchmark of having more followers than the real Elsevier Twitter account, here’s a selection of “fake publisher” tweets to enjoy. View the story “Publishing Lulz” on Storify [<a href="http://storify.com/M_Publishing/publishing-lulz" target="_blank">View the story "Publishing Lulz" on Storify</a>]

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Lathered Up About SOPA, RWA, and More

by mslevine January 17, 2012

For the moment, SOPA (HR 3261: Stop Online Piracy Act) is on hold in the wake of a remarkable response from the blogosphere, organizations, and private citizens. The bill is dense, opaque, overreaching, and probably unenforceable. It manages to put a crimp on civil liberties and fail to actually help copyright holders who really do ...

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“Once More with Feeling”: How MLA Found its Heart

by Korey Jackson January 16, 2012

Ah, MLA. Your reputation for pre-interview angst, post-interview binging, self-important Q&A sessions, obtuseness and obscurantism has put you on many scholars’ non-grata list (at least those not professionally obligated to attend). This year, however, avoiders missed what felt like the stirrings of a sea change: the MLA’s heart (like a post-holiday Grinch) grew at least ...

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New Developments in the World of Art Publishing

by Meredith Kahn December 22, 2011

You saw Maurizio Cattelan: All at the Guggenheim. You loved it. Did you know you can get the exhibition catalogue as an e-book? And there’s an app, too! The Guggenheim recently announced the e-book version of the Cattelan catalogue, as well as an effort to make out-of-print catalogues available online. Exciting news for e-book reading art ...

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What We’re Reading, SOPA edition

by Meredith Kahn December 15, 2011

Today the House Judiciary Committee is debating SOPA, the Stop Online Piracy Act (also known as H.R. 3261). The bill would allow rights holders and the US Department of Justice to take legal action against websites alleged to be facilitating copyright infringement. Here are a two recent opinion pieces on SOPA and its potential effect ...

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