Week 1: Lessig

     The book Remix by Lawrence Lessig (2008) offers a compelling argument against the direction of the current copyright laws and regulations.  For example a few years ago, I attended a birthday party at a home that was out of my normal socioeconomic status.  This home had a music room where all the party goers gathered so that some of the guests could entertain the rest of us.  No one was excluded from performing, but the majority of us did not actively participate on the program other than as audience. 

     Lessig referred to this as the RW culture.  The performers were interacting with created works to make something new.  According to Lessig, this is the type of activity that should be allowed to occur. Indeed, it was not unlike what Lessig said Sousa insisted should be allowed to occur (p.25).
  

     I think before the advent of RO technology, this was the norm.  Sousa, Lessig maintained, felt that once the amateur began comparing his performance to the professional, this type of activity would cease to exist.  I am not sure though that looking at the copyright laws of today, there weren't multiple copyright law infringements that day because someone captured the performances on video.  Thus the RW culture clashed with the RO culture as this creative performance copied the works of others.
 

     In Lessig's book, the most compelling evidence that something is wrong with current copyright laws and the wars being waged occurred in the introduction to the book. My sense of fairness fairly bristled when I read about the mom who videotaped her son dancing to a song he heard. The ensuing legal battle because she posted the video on YouTube for family to view left me speechless.  Then, as he explained the war on our youth and their label as pirates, thieves, and so forth, I suddenly became interested in what I thought would be a casual conversation about a dry subject. 

     As Lessig went on to explain the difference between the RO and the RW cultures, I became increasingly alarmed. The RO culture refers to read only and is when a creative work is created and others view it, read it, or engage with the material as it is and as the creator deemed the work be shared. The RW culture  refers to the ability to both read and write. The process of interacting with the creator's work can occur at multiple levels.  It could be sharing the work in its entirety, breaking apart the creator's work and making something new from this work or performing the work (p. 28).
 

     The copyright war is all about protecting the rights of innovators and creators of knowledge. The current war, as it is being waged, if won, will do so at the expense of losing the right to protect our culture and the sharing of our culture.  I found, I too, wanted to take the side of those who have been deemed pirates.  As I realized the support of the RO culture at the expense of the RW culture would bring about a less vibrant culture, the topic became about gaining knowledge so that I could teach others about the ramifications of what is occurring in our nation's capital. 

     Currently, according to Lessig, the law makers are creating laws that declare war on this country's citizens and legally allow corporations to harass individuals who chose to interact with the culture of their day when they post a video of their son or daughter with a copyrighted work within the video.  I think we all need to become aware of what is happening and work to ensure changes in copyright laws that protect our culture and our right to interact with it in appropriate ways.   

Source information:

Lawrence, L. (2008). Remix. New York, NY: Penguin Books.