I have received information from a few newspapers up here in Canada
that some newspaper publishers and editors are downloading
information from NativeNet groups and using it in their newspapers
without the original author's consent or acknowledgement.
As a Native teacher and a freelance writer I would feel violated if
this happened to me. Can you imagine spending time on an article
that you send to NativeNet so that your colleagues could read/
critic and somewhere on NativeNet a publisher/editor(s) is
downloading that article for his/her newspaper (hard copy/paper
edition) and using a different author's name from the newspaper
organization.
As one individual from a newspaper organization explained to me,
publishers/editors do this b/c this cuts overhead cost of paying a
freelance writer. Most importantly, most writers on NativeNet would
have no idea that their work is being published somewhere in paper
format.
I think this would be a different situation if an author's name and
source(NativeNet) was acknowledged with the article, even without
being paid for the work. I do believe many writers would agree with
this, as the goal for writing is not only money but, to be
acknowledged for one's intellectual work. One very professional and
decent example of an editor/publisher that acknowledges writers is
the electronic newspaper on NativeNet Wotanging-Ikche(Native
American News) by Gary Night Owl. Clearly, hard copy newspapers can
learn a lesson from Gary's electronic newspaper/magazine edition.
It is well thought-out and very professional, congratulations Gary.
But, in hard copy newspapers which circulation can range from a few
1000 to 100,000+ competition is fierce and money is scarce. It
would still be proper/professional to at least acknowledge a writer
from NativeNet which is being used for a minor or major hard copy
newspaper. Unfortunately there are some newspaper organizations
that work in a very unprofessional manner.
How do the rest of you feel about this particular issue and what
mechanisms could we put in place so that Native/non-Native writers
on NativeNet are not being misused in this way?
Is there any possibility that subscribers are sent a semi-copyright
statement that information taken from NativeNet must be
acknowledged by the original author/writer for his/her article(s)
which is to be used outside NativeNet for other electronic and/or
hard copy format newspapers and magazines??
Regards,
Gary Armstrong
gary@sparrow.ampr.ab.ca
[ I have written to Gary Armstrong to ask for more particulars of this
situation. I agree that it is not right for articles to be taken from
this or any other mailing list or electronic forum and re-published
without giving credit to the author. The question of whether explicit
permission is required is another matter - but if the publication in
question is a for-profit operation, I feel that permission should
certainly be obtained. --Gary (Trujillo) gst@gnosys.svle.ma.us ]