Disclaimer
This guide on using public domain materials, Fair Use materials, Creative Commons licensed materials, and copyright law is provided for informational purposes only. We are not lawyers and cannot provide legal advice. This guide is intended only to provide information resources that can be used to self-educate. Should you require legal advice, please contact an attorney.
General Media Best Practices and Resources
- CSM: Code of Best Practices in Fair Use for Media Literacy EducationThe Code of Best Practices in Fair Use for Media Literacy Education from the Center for Media and Social Impact.
- NCTE: Code of Best Practices in Fair Use for Media Literacy EducationThis document is a code of best practices that helps educators using media literacy concepts and techniques to interpret the copyright doctrine of fair use.
- Legal sources of Online Content from EDUCAUSEA list of all of the legitimate online services that are approved by the AAP, MPAA, and RIAA. Provided and compiled by EDUCAUSE.
- Library Copyright Alliance - Issue Brief: Streaming of Films for Educational PurposesThis paper considers three provisions of the Copyright Act that could permit streaming films to classrooms: Sections 107, 110(2), and 110(1).
- Society for Cinema and Media Studies' in Teaching for Film and Media EducatorsThe Society for Cinema and Media Studies (“SCMS”) has created this Statement of Best Practices for its membership to clarify some of the issues concerning the permissible use of media for teaching.
- Society for Cinema and Media Studies' Statement of Fair Use Best Practices for media Studies PublishingThis Statement of Best Practices identifies what media scholars consider to be fair use of copyrighted works within media studies publishing in the United States.
Images
- University of Houston Digital LibraryContains digital collections of materials documenting the University of Houston, the City of Houston, and the State of Texas, as well as other historically and culturally significant materials. Consult individual items for terms of use.
- University of Houston Image CafeQuickly discover and download popular images from the UH Digital Library to liven up your presentations, projects and publications. Consult individual items for terms of use.
- ARTstor This link opens in a new windowA nonprofit resource that provides more than one million digital images in the arts, architecture, humanities, and sciences with an accessible suite of software tools for teaching and research.
- Creative Commons-Licensed Images on FlickrMany Flickr users have chosen to offer their work under a Creative Commons license, and you can browse or search through content under each type of license.
- Wikimedia CommonsA database of over twenty-five million freely usable media files to which anyone can contribute.
- FreeImages.com (formerly, stock.xchng)An online gallery of freely usable stock photos.
Music
- Music CopyrightMusic copyright information on the Music Resources research guide.
- Best Practices in the Fair Use of Copyrighted Materials in Music ScholarshipThis document on best practices in fair use for music scholarship was written over a period of several years by an ad hoc committee of AMS Council, and formally adopted by the Board of Directors in March 2010.
- Copyright for Music LibrariansA site maintained by the Legislation Committee of the Music Library Association (MLA) as a resource for anyone interested in issues of copyright as they apply to the fields of music and music librarianship.
Video
- Bound By Law: Tales from the Public DomainA downloadable comic from the Center for the Study of Public Domain at Duke University.
- So What - About Copyright: What Artists Need to Know About Copyright & Trademarks; for Filmmakers, Visual Artists, and Writers.A book from Public Knowledge that discusses issues of copyright for filmmakers, visual artists, and writers.
- Examples of Successful Fair Use in Documentary FilmExamples of uncontested choices for fair use organized according to the principles that filmmakers articulated in the Statement of Best Practices in Fair Use in Documentary Film.
- Code of Best Practices in Fair Use for Online VideoCode of Best Practices in Fair Use for Online Video from the Center for Media and Social Impact.
DMCA Information
- EDUCAUSE: Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA)Resources from EDUCASE regarding the Digital Millennium Copyright Act.
- ALA: DMCAInformation from the American Library Association that summarizes the key sections of the DMCA that relate to libraries.
- Copyright Office Report on DMCAA Report of the Register of Copyrights Pursuant to §104 of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act from the United States Copyright Office.
- DMCA Bill TextThe full text of the final version of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act.