In reference to the discussions that went on for a while about being able
to use cartoons/comics in the classroom, I attended a workshop on Friday
afternoon which was done by Dr. Sarah Wiant, Director of the Law Library
and Professor of Law at Washington & Lee University. It was a pretty good
workshop and she had some interesting things to say. In regard to
cartoons/comic strips she said:
According to Section 110(1) of the copyright laws
A cartoon or comic strip should be regarded as a chapter in a book and may
be copied. As to it's distribution, you may do it in one of two ways a)
distribute a copy to each student or, b) project the image via overhead,
powerpoint or other presentation software; however, it must follow the same
fair use rules as with any other copied material that is distributed in a
classroom; i.e.,
1. It must be distributed in the classroom (or directly to a student who
was not in the room at the time of the distribution)
2. The copy must be lawful; i.e., follow the usual fair use rules of
brevity (already covered), spontaneity, and cumulative effect.
If you want to use it in subsequent classes, you have to have permission.
One of the other interesting topics that we touched on is the
"broadcasting" of copyrighted materials. Basically, according to Section
110(2) of the copyright laws, you can't do it (although there are
committees currently meeting to try to resolve some of these issues due to
the increasing use of distance education in its many forms.
