Copyright Criminals

Question: Interrogate this statement: "The photographer is to the painter as a sampler is to the instrumentalist."

The statement above is very interesting because it shows how sampling like photography are easy short cuts from someone’s hard work. But both are a completely different format.  Painting involves brush strokes and different techniques where photography takes lighting and the click of a button.  Both take the right eye, but the photographer isn’t a detriment to the painter.  Similarly, the sampler is taking pieces of the instrumentalists work, but is using it in a completely different way.  They are able to take someone’s great instrumental work and turn it into another masterpiece.  The instrumentalist, just like the painter, should be flattered and happy that this would occur, but instead we see pure capitalism at work.  It shows another way to make more money and today who wouldn’t like this?

Its funny how in today’s world we see copyright infringement as frowned upon, but its ironic due to the fact the public is constantly pirating music and movies.  As seen in Copyright Criminals, the industry had no idea that this would ever occur.  When sampling first began, it wasn’t seen as a threat because the industry didn’t realize how much people would make from it and how much they could make from selling the sample.  The same trend occurred with the pirating of music.  When it first began it was seen as just sharing music with other people via the Internet.  The industry wasn’t too threatened by it because they didn’t think it would take away from their sales, but when they were able to get the music for free the consumers stopped paying for majority of music. 

The ironic part of the video we saw in class was the different views on sampling.  Some artists felt very passionately that sampling destroyed real talent and was an easy way out, where others believed that this was just a way for an artist to take an old hit and create new music from it.  Couldn’t this trend also be seen in fashion?  Leggings and leg warmers were worn when my mother was young, but just last year they became popular again.  Using someone elses style or music as a basis to create your own seems harmless enough, but now people are charging extreme amounts of money which destroys the ability of sampling creation. 

Google Street View

Question: If the government did something like Google Street view we would freak out. Why don't we freak out if a private corporation does it?

The public seems to be much more sensitive when the term government is incorporated.  We see this as an invasion of our privacy and an encroachment into the territory of our own rights.  It is a constant fear that the government is trying to gain control of their lives reducing freedom.  No one likes the fear of the government having a view of our houses, streets, schools, etc. available at the tips of their fingers.  This point of view was seen when, in the past, the government began listening in on phone conversations.  We see this as a total invasion of privacy.  With government comes government enforced rules, the question of how long they have had the information, and the possibility of a fee to access the database (since there are taxes on almost everything).

When the public thinks of a private corporation doing this same exact thing, we believe that there is a reason that is beneficial to us.  These corporations are thought to be doing it for the public good.  These private corporations also don't have a hand in our lives.  It is also key to point out that anyone, with access to a computer, is able to see it equally. Private corporations are also subject to the laws created by the “government” which are there to protect the privacy of the public. 

One specific example for fear of government is Marxism.  The pure fact that the government was scared of Communism (a fear which the public picked up pretty fast) and enforced a law that said even without proof we will condemn you for pure belief is crazy!  If anyone thought that you were a part of espionage, they were able to report it to the government who would then prosecute you.  This invasion of privacy and rights led to an epidemic of government fear.  Even more so then before, people learned anything the government created had the possibility of danger, specifically stemming from all of the power they hold.