Freedom of Expression: Overzealous Copyright Bozos and Other Enemies of Creativity

by Kembrew McLeod

Book Overview

Freedom of Expression? covers the ways in which intellectual property laws have been used to privatize all forms of expression--from guitar riffs and Donald Trump's "you're fired" gesture to human... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0385513259
• ISBN13: 9780385513258
• Release Date: February 2005
• Publisher: Doubleday Books
• Length: 384 Pages
• Weight: 1.15 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.1" x 5.8" x 8.3"

Customer Reviews

Curtailing creativity

The subtitle "overzealous copyright bozos and other enemies of creativity" aptly describes this missive against current trends in intellectual property law that media prankster Kembrew McLeod has launched with this thought-provoking and often humorous book. A central premise of McLeod's book is that an erosion of the creative commons by continually expanding copyright and patent legislation, rather than encouraging artistic and scientific innovation, has actually had the opposite effect. Moreover, the encroachment of private interests on the public domain via this expanding legislation has made it prohibitively expensive to perform scientific research and cheapened our culture. Copyright and patent laws were legislative tools originally conceived to foster creativity. The laws allowed the creators of cultural and technological artifacts to exclusive profits for a fixed period of time. Afterwards, the works would enter the public domain, where they could be built upon by the next generation. McLeod describes how folk musician and political activist Woody Guthrie freely borrowed melodies and lyrics from existing folk and show tunes for his compositions. Many of these tunes were only a few years old at the time Guthrie incorporated them into his music, yet this was not seen as theft. Artists of his era implicitly recognized the concept of the information commons - that they could build upon existing melodies to create something novel. In fact, this methodology goes back to nineteenth century classical music, where composers like Mahler and Dvorak used folk melodies as a basis for many of their symphonic compositions. Woody Guthrie has been dead for 40 years, and many of his songs are well over 60 years old. Ironically, the current holders of his copyright have been very litigious in their pursuance of any perceived transgression against their "right" to his music. They fail to recognize how the genesis of these songs relied on a freely available pool of existing melodies, rhythms, and lyrics - a creative commons - that they in turn are slowly eroding. The result is that current copyright legislation no longer encourages creativity, but destroys it. McLeod looks at the effects this erosion of the public sphere in a wide range of areas: sampling and collage in music, trademarks in biotechnology, the use of lawsuits to curtail fair use, and the copyright of common sayings. There are long-reaching ramifications, including the curtailing of free speech and democratic institutions. If the Watergate scandal occurred this century, could it have been made public, given that documentation produced by outsourced private entities is not freely available? How could the results of voting machines, produced by and managed by private corporations, be independently verified if they are under private control? These and many other troubling issues are raised in this incisive analysis of unchecked greed.

Goodbookonveryimportantissue

Covers similar ground as Brand Name Bullies, by Bollier, as well as the general theses of copyright law jocks Litman, Vaidyanathan, Lessig and others, but with a fresh perspective and many excellent examples of over-reaching IP litigation. Anyone toying with the idea of becoming and intellectual property lawyer, especially a patent attorney, should read this book and consider carefully whether you want to become part of this growing problem.

Great humor and informative book

I found this book to be a terrific read that was informative, insightful and filled with humor that enlivened the subject matter. In fact, McLeod's quirky sense of humor and obvious delight in the bizarre/ironic is a big part of what makes "Freedom of Expression" such a page-turner. That, and his personal experience with the subject matter. I'd argue that it's also why his book will probably matter more than 20 purely academic handlings of the subject because it speaks to a larger audience of everyday, uninformed readers (like me) while urging them to become involved. The compelling subjects of intellectual property and copyright law are complicated and easily baffling, so it helps to read an informal book from an author who can illustrate the issues from an artist's perspective and that of an accomplished academic-without sounding pretentious or overly wordy. Also his economical, no-nonsense writing style helps make this a quick and enjoyable read. McLeod is no simple lecturer or arm chair pundit-he's out there in the middle of the fray. And while he understandably spends more time on the issues surrounding art and entertainment (his forte) he still provides chilling glimpses at the darker implications in more serious realms of medicine and agriculture. But these are topics for another book entirely. My only complaint is that I wish there could have been some photo pages included. Knowing that McLeod is a visual artist, I'm sure he would have come up with some memorable images (oh well, maybe next time). In summary, I would highly recommend this book to anyone interested in copyright/intellectual property law and especially for artists and those concerned about the (near) future of art. Wonderful job, Kembrew-keep `em coming.

Crucial message, but too polemical

Kembrew McLeod's exploration of the major problems involved in recent expansions of copyright, trademark, right of publicity, and other areas of intellectual property is incredibly important. Many people are largely unaware of the real and damaging effects these expansions have had--bioprospector Larry Proctor's patenting of yellow Mexican beans, which he himself developed from a bag of beans he bought from a farmer, leading to a 90 percent loss of income for 22,000 Mexican farmers; drugs to combat HIV and AIDS being unavailable in countries where the epidemic is most frightening; the chilling effect on creativity in such realms as hip-hop and poetry. However, McLeod seems to be preaching to the already-converted. There are a number of asides and snide remarks which are par for the course for those of us who already understand and agree with McLeod's point, yet are stumbling blocks to his message reaching a broader audience. It's unfortunate, because without these asides (off-topic criticism of the second Gulf War and so forth) the book is a grand slam. Without these incidental remarks to latch on to, I can't see how the reader can fail to take McLeod seriously. If you're already sympathetic to this movement, pick up the book for all the examples McLeod provides--they're good ammunition in the fight against expanding corporate-friendly IP law. If you're open-minded enough to have read this review but not yet convinced, do yourself a favor and read the book with an open mind, too. This is an important issue that affects many more people than teenagers downloading music online. It affects farmers, victims of AIDS, writers, musicians, and political activists of all stripes.