web v print – what about fair use?

The title of the New York Times article is, A.P. Cracks Down on Unpaid Use of Articles on Web – and, if the AP were to get it’s way, I wouldn’t be able to write that here without paying someone.

Of course, I could quote that title in a book on this subject (and sell it!) without paying anyone, because that falls under the fair use – but the AP is proposing that I shouldn’t be able to put it in a post (or tweet it, etc) and link it to the source without paying. Read this paragraph again and then tell me that these people aren’t insane.

I’m not a writer and I’m not going to go into all the details of the AP’s stupidity here, but if you’re interested in learning more, you can read: A.P. goes nuclear on fair use / What Would Fair Use Look Like in an Online Era? / How Reuters Should Be Responding To The AP’s Suicide.

If you’re interested in the topic in general, some good folks to follow (twitter) are Chanders and Mathewi.

UPDATE: Read – AP: “We’re Done” Answering Questions About Fair Use & Our Rights System – by Danny Sullivan (July 28)

PS
I’m not a fan of what the music industry is trying to do either – but that’s another rant – Suffice to say that I think these folks are fighting a war that can only aspire to be half as successful as America’s War on Drugs.