Aug
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Is Your Blog Legal? A Great Resource And A Lesson Plan!
The United States Constitution protects our right to free speech vigorously, so unless you write a very popular blog that someone wants to take down, your chances of being sued are slim. However, most writers want to comply to avoid any potential problems and . . . well, it’s just the right thing to do.
Many bloggers violate several basic laws simply due to ignorance. We all know that doesn’t make it OK, but I’ve been guilty, too. That’s why I thought it would be a good idea to not only make sure we all have our bases covered, but to make sure our children know what they should, too . One of the best resources available online on the subject is Electronic Frontier Foundation’s “Blogger’s Legal Guide” , an excellent (free) website.
If reading pages of legal-ese isn’t your idea of spending your afternoon, then skim this list of common questions and take a quick look to see if you are violating any basic blogging laws:
When can I borrow someone’s images for my blog post? (probably the most ignored question…)
Can I be sued for publishing somebody else’s private facts?
Can I sue if my site is wrongly taken down? (supporting the biblical grounds not to sue, you do want to know your rights so as to take action!)
Can I be fired for whistle-blogging about my company’s violation of the law?
May I freely copy from federal government documents?
I found something interesting on someone else’s blog. May I quote it?
Is truth a defense to defamation claims?
Can bloggers get press passes?
Also, because some laws are different for student bloggers than they are for the general public, there is a list of questions that apply to student bloggers here. As a Christian, many of these questions could be a subject of family discussion and “reasoned together” from an ethical/biblical standpoint. I highly recommend having this discussion with your teens, especially if they blog.
Teaching It
The Electronic Frontier Foundation (referenced above) lends itself nicely to writing your own questions for your student to find the answers to. If you would like it all done for you, an excellent resource to create your own mini-homeschool course on copyright law can be found at http://www.teachingcopyright.org/curriculum/hs . There you can find five lessons designed to take approximately 60 minutes each along with additional resources, handouts, quizzes and a glossary. Very nice.
Creative Commons (dot org) offers a free tool that you can license your work yourself at http://creativecommons.org/choose/ Be sure to read “Before Licensing” to be sure you understand what you are doing and what each of the individual choices mean. If you are using this as a Homeschool Entrepreneur lesson, or simply want to learn more on your own, there are many case studies that can be helpful in understanding what different companies need in the way of licensing and copyrights.
Above all, since many of the issues talked about in these websites are essentially judgement calls, it’s excellent fodder for discussion with your teens about where do you draw the line? When is it right to ‘legally’ report the truth when it could harm someone? Is it OK to let something slide because it’s such a minor infraction, yet takes time to do it right? Do you blog anonymously so you can say things you wouldn’t if people knew who you were?
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November 19th, 2010 on 12:38 pm
We have enjoyed reviewing your website and would like to thank you for adding your comments that have assisted some of our homeschool families. Several of our homeschooling families have commented about having you as a part of our parent resources and have shared their desire for ED Anywhere to recognize you as a contributing member of the homeschool resources groups.
ED Anywhere has completed its review of your website, wants acknowledge a seal of approval of your website and services. We agree with our homeschool families that your blogs and articles are found to be beneficial for our home school families. In reading the several articles that you have provided for the public, we see you as an example and contributor with excellent insights for our homeschool families.
With your permission ED Anywhere would like to add this website to our directory of resources so that other homeschool families and students can enjoy them as well. ED Anywhere has over 1,500,000+ visitors a year and with thousands of students worldwide, your website would be an excellent resource for our homeschooling parents. Please check to see if your homeschool group is added to our homeschool group directory.
ED Anywhere provides the best in homeschooling resources such as yours as will as: accredited high school diploma, GED Prep, middle school & high school classes, technology classes, remedial classes, tutoring, and the best curriculum for middle school and high school students for the past 10 years. ED Anywhere has also been rated #1 by homeschool.com and received several awards for excellence and service to homeschoolers and the community.
Email us at info@edanywhere.com if you want to be added to our list or if you want a guest user id and password. We appreciate all that you are doing for our homeschool community. http://www.educationanywhere.com or http://www.edanywhere.com