john – Page 16 – Thinking Out Loud, aka The Broad Gaze

Why is it so important that the public be able to put werewolves on T-shirts?

This Washington Post editorial attempts to answer this very question, regarding lawsuits over the use of copyrighted images in Twilight fan material. Following an apt quote from Tolkien, the author suggests:

Films such as the Twilight saga resonate because they show us complex characters grappling with big issues. …

Pictures, videos and slogans on T-shirts are tools of modern expression, and with a phenomenon as omnipresent as Twilight, fans should be free to engage, manipulate, remix and remake. Free speech is just too important for anything less.

Fans of any kind of cultural artifact, Twilight or otherwise, should agree with that.

via Washington Post – The Twilight copyright saga: Forbidden love and forbidden T-shirts.

Catch up

Here are a few links from the last week or so that I never quite got the chance to post.

Court Affirms Ban on Aiding Groups Tied to Terror – NY Times
- A 5-4 decision “upheld a federal law that makes it a crime to provide “material support” to foreign terrorist organizations, even if the help takes the form of training for peacefully resolving conflicts.”
  This and Citizens United mark 2 major First Amendment decisions this year. I find them an interesting contrast (that I might post about another day).
Who is attending these “secret” FCC net neutrality meetings? – Ars Technica
- The FCC, in a surprising move, held closed-door meetings last week regarding Internet Neutrality. I’m not quite sure why the Sunshine law didn’t apply.
BP Now Using Police to Strongarm Activists With Cameras – Fast Company
- Public space means cameras are a-ok. BP, this is inexcusable!
Code of Best Practices in Fair Use for Scholarly Research in Communication – Center for Social Media
- On a more positive note, the Center for Social Media released their best practices for the community of communication researchers, of which I am one. Thanks Pat and company!

Think twice before checking in

Sites like FourSquare are pretty cool. The basic idea is that by “checking in” at a location friends will know to find you there, and businesses will get to know their best customers.

But one concern is that it doesn’t take a sophisticated hacker to track another person’s location. Earlier this year, a trio of Dutch software developers put up a site called PleaseRobMe.com. The principle was simple: pull data from Twitter and Foursquare and post the username and (self-reported) locations. And many users weren’t paying attention to their privacy settings.

This has given me pause on a number of occasions–even for blogging while on vacation.Â I see this as a great counterargument to Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg’s announcement that “the age of privacy is over.” There are a few perfectly legitimate reasons to keep some information private.

via Location Services Raise Privacy Concerns – International Business Times.

AT&T: It’s our ball!

AT&T: drop net neutrality or U-verse gets it (Ars Technica)

AT&T has told the FCC that if it reclassifies broadband providers as common carriers, it will “have to re-evaluate whether we put shovels in the ground.” Interestingly enough, AT&T has already admitted that they are investing less in the development of this badly needed high speed network.

“AT&T has already slowed down U-verse deployment under the current Title I regime,” declared S. Derek Turner [of Free Press], “so to blame the FCC for the company’s own investment decisions is simply disingenuous.”

This points out the crucial difference between the understandings of Net Neutrality proponents and opponents. Providers see their network as “their ball,” while we’re asking them to build the playground.