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" Consistent with BOR Policy IV-3.20, the UMUC Library has developed guidelines for the use of copyrighted materials. These guidelines address library and educational fair use as well as fair use exceptions for research and scholarly work. The purpose of this document is to help UMUC faculty understand copyright and fair use in the classroom, and it may be useful to UMUC students as well."

"One of the rights accorded to the owner of copyright is the right to reproduce or to authorize others to reproduce the work in copies or phonorecords. This right is subject to certain limitations found in sections 107 through 118 of the copyright law (title 17, U. S. Code). One of the more important limitations is the doctrine of "fair use." The doctrine of fair use has developed through a substantial number of court decisions over the years and has been codified in section 107 of the copyright law."

Student Press Law Center.  Giving information on fair use in education.

Video on fair use in education

Video on Fair Use in Media Literacy

Copyright Chart from Hall Davidson. Still works

Copyright Law Copyright law protects the owner of an original work against the unauthorized use of his work by others. The work of student journalists, photographers and artists - just like any other author - is protected from copyright infringement. The most common issue for student media, however, is not so much protecting their work from use by someone else as it is determining whether they can use material produced by others in their publications or programs. For example, is it permissible to reproduce a popular cartoon character or reprint the words of a poem in a student yearbook? Is it okay to download photos from the Internet to illustrate a story in the student newspaper? Can you run clips from a music video on a student-produced television program? Unfortunately, the answers to such questions can be more complicated than a simple "yes" or "no."

"Plagiarist!" It is an accusation that strikes fear in the hearts of students, academics, journalists, authors and presidential candidates alike. The fear is certainly that of being caught: punished by those in authority, professionally censured by one's peers, publicly humiliated. Often too, however, it is a fear of the unknown. From the day a third grade student, armed with cut-and-paste commands, is assigned a report on Thomas Jefferson and turns to Wikipedia, he confronts the same questions faced by the best-selling historian who dares consult secondary sources: how do I use this information without "overusing" it. How much use is too much? What needs to be attributed and what doesn't? Is substantially rewording or paraphrasing a passage sufficient to make it my own? What constitutes "substantially?" And on and on. Even when one makes every conscious effort to avoid the P-word, the nagging thought can remain: what if it wasn't enough?

Everyone wants Bart. Or SpongeBob. Or one of those Aqua Teen Hunger Force dudes. Each year, student yearbook editors from across the country call the Student Press Law Center to ask how they can get an image of Bart Simpson (of the FOX-TV animated show, "The Simpsons") - or whoever the cartoon character de jour happens to be - into their yearbook or other publication without running afoul of copyright law. They usually receive both some good news and some bad news. The bad news is that they may not be able to use Bart in precisely the way they had hoped. Bart is a copyrighted image and federal copyright law restricts its use. The good news, however, is that with a little extra work, planning and creativity, it should be possible to legally include Bart in some way.

Copyright law can sometimes get pretty complicated. One thing, however, is clear: the surest way to use a copyrighted work legitimately is to get permission from the copyright holder.

Copyright law can be both the friend and foe of the student media. While the law protects student journalists against the unauthorized use of their stories, drawings or photographs, it also limits their ability to reproduce the works of others. The following guide, which explains the basics of copyright law, should provide student journalists with most of what they need to know to both safeguard and exercise their rights.

Article by Hall Davidson explaining copyright and what a school can do to avoid copyright issues.