5 Copyright Blogging Basics

BY AMANDA LUPINACCI, APOLLON EDITOR, SPRING 2021

As a blogger, have you struggled with navigating complex copyright regulations? Copyright laws differ from location to location and are often difficult to understand. Here is a guide to make sure you don’t break any U.S. copyright laws while running your blog. 

1. Consider the nature of the work; is it creative? 

As Purdue’s “Strategies for Fair Use” page says “Works that are creative may require permission in order to be used”. When using any form of creative work, ranging from text to photos, it’s important to realize they are likely to fall under copyright protection. However, other work such as facts and algorithms are not protected by U.S. copyright laws. 

2. Pay attention to where you are getting your images:

One strong indicator that an image is copyrighted is that it includes a watermark,which is a faint, often translucent, design on an image that includes the photographer’s name, company, or social media handle. Unfortunately, most copyrighted images don’t include a watermark for aesthetic reasons. Using images from stock websites such as Pixabay or Unsplash is a great way to ensure your images follow copyright laws.

3. Know what works are protected under copyright laws:

Both published and unpublished creative works are protected by copyright. This means that creative works from Instagram or anywhere else on the internet, such as photos, graphics, audio, music and audiovisual pieces cannot be used without permission or payment. 

4. Consider fair use:

Fair use allows the usage of copyrighted work; however, it’s important to note, “Evaluating fair use is done on a case-by-case basis for each work that you use” (Berkeley Library). Factors such as the nature, portion, and marketplace effect of the work are taken into consideration. Work that is more creative than factual, used in small quantities, and doesn’t interfere with economic gain is less likely to cause legal trouble. With all of this in mind it is often safest to avoid using copyrighted work all together.

5. Write your own work:

Make sure your writing is original. Taking a line or short sentence from another source may seem acceptable, but its scale does not entirely exclude it from copyright laws. It is much easier to allude to a source and give it proper credit than dealing with the legal implications of plagiarism.