This week I finally experienced my first official symposium… sure, there were no ancient Greek banquets, beverages, or balloons, but I was able to gain some insight into general blogging and online etiquette, and some basic tips on how to, simply put, be a ‘nice guy’ on the web. This discussion included going about using works other than your own, distributing content, and dealing with the public’s opinions.
1. Copyright & Content Ownership
As both a consumer and producer of both online and offline media (some may call me a ‘produser’ – hello brownie points), these topics aren’t as exciting to me as, per say, ‘how to make a viral video’, but contain information I most certainly need to know. I know I tend to forget that just because something is online, it isn’t free. People often pick and choose content from various different sources – copyrighted or not – to use, unmaliciously, for their own beneficial purposes, without considering the legal infringements that may accompany such activities. What deterred me from the direction of the symposium’s discussion is the lack of reference to the viral like/share culture we live in, that thrives on media spreading at a rapid pace. Credit and acknowledgement is commonly, if not always, implicitly inferred by both the distributor and the audience when presenting another producer’s work, or including it as part of their own. I feel like the general discussion of the symposium failed to touch on the differences between claiming that another’s work is your own in its entirety, versus promoting/distributing another’s work or incorporating another’s work as an accompaniment to your own.
2. Online Defamation
What’s that the kids say these days? You know, those hipsters with the apple bottom jeans and boots with the fur?
Oh yes.
Haters gonna hate.
The internet is filled with ‘trolls’, ‘haters’, and at the basis of it – opinions. Modern society celebrates our ability to speak our minds online. Our opinions are no longer overshadowed by powerful organisations who have the resources to distribute messages. The general public, as citizen journalists, are able to tweet, blog or post about anything and everything, often enabling people to say things they wouldn’t generally say in person. And even if they would – they are provided with the opportunity to present such messages to a much larger, public audience. These are our ‘keyboard warriors’.
Defamation refers to the act of making unflattering claims against someone, and claiming that they’re true (when in most cases, they’re not).
The most potent pointers on defamation from this week’s symposium were as follows:
- If someone finds something offensive – regardless of if it is or isn’t – it is. Offence is based entirely on audience reception.
- If you don’t know what you’re talking about. You may want to zip yo’ trap.
- “Opinion is dumbness”
But I can’t say I agree with the last one… This quote from Adrian had me puzzled. Isn’t that in itself an opinion? And can’t opinions be educated and factual? I understand it was intended to be controversial and spark thought – and it has – but I find that statement offensive and somewhat obnoxious…. those who are closed to others’ opinions forbid themselves of growth, education, discussion and empathy. I’d love to hear someone else’s opinion on the matter…
That’s all for now folks!
