Social media law is a largely new frontier and is often unclear or difficult to understand. Trademarks, patents, and copyrights are all topics which can affect social media law, so it is important to know how these topics can affect you and your social media channels. Social Media Law: What You Need to Know At our Social Media Breakfast Houston, We brought in Travis Crabtree, a former journalist who has been practicing law with Gray Reed & McGraw for 16 years, to read more...
Sponsored Conversations: FTC Guidelines Impact Companies and Bloggers
Is blogging or tweeting out an opinion about a product or service advertising? If you are being paid to do it, or if you have received the item in question as a freebie for a company, as of December 1, 2009, you are bound by the same truth-in-advertising guidelines as advertisers.
- Advertising must be truthful and non-deceptive;
- Advertisers must have evidence to back up their claims; and
- Advertisements cannot be unfair.
Six Best Practices for the Fair Use of Video
A few weeks ago I reminded readers that The Electronic Frontier Foundation has a free legal guide for bloggers. Today, the American University's Center for Social Media released its code of six best practices (pdf) for fair use of online video. Along with what they are calling the most common situations that are bound to arise, they include a description, principle and the limitations of read more...
Fair Use: Hey, That Isn’t Fair! Free Legal Guidance for Bloggers
One of the many issues that came up at Blog Potomac last Friday was that of fair use and copyright. Both from the point of view of the communication professional and also from the point of view of the creators of content. It couldn't have come at a better time as his very issue is being debated between bloggers and the Associated Press right now. There is a fantastic article in the New York Times written by Saul Hansell that lays out the APs concerns and also covers the bloggers reaction to those read more...
Fair Use: The Perfect Gift and the Perfect Storm, Legally Speaking
I hate shopping for Christmas. You might ask, "What does this have to do with fair use law?" - patience grasshopper, I am getting there. So when I hear someone that I know say or write, "I would really love X, my ears tend to perk up." A friend of mine blogged that he liked a particular photo by Thomas Hawk of the sunset over San Francisco and pined that he would love to have it on a black T-shirt. How easy read more...
