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Fair use cannot be  reduced to a checklist.    Fair use requires that people think.         Carrie Russell  ALA

Definition

In its most general sense, a fair use is any copying of copyrighted material done for a limited and “transformative” purpose, such as to comment upon, criticize, or parody a copyrighted work. Such uses can be done without permission from the copyright owner. In other words, fair use is a defense against a claim of copyright infringement. If your use qualifies as a fair use, then it would not be considered an illegal infringement. 

Stanford University Copyright and Fair use

Fair use criteria

There is a criteria which needs to be met if a work is to be classed under fair use of a copyright work:

1. purpose & character of reuse - commercial or non profit or educational use, has the user acted reasonably and in good faith in light of general practise in his or her particular field.
2. nature of the copyright work
3. the proportion of the work used in relation to the whole.
4. the effect of the use upon the potential market or value of the copyright work.
5. Is it transformative, does it build upon, modify or rework the original? Does it add value or repurpose a copyright work?

Uses that are generally fair use

Subject to some general limitations discussed later in this article, the following types of uses are usually deemed fair uses:

Criticism and comment -- for example, quoting or excerpting a work in a review or criticism for purposes of illustration or comment. 

Parody -- that is, a work that ridicules another, usually well-known, work by imitating it in a comic way.

Nonprofit educational uses -- for example, photocopying of limited portions of written works by teachers for classroom use.

Research and scholarship -- for example, quoting a short passage in a scholarly, scientific, or technical work for illustration or clarification of the author's observations.

News reporting -- for example, summarizing an address or article, with brief quotations, in a news report.

 from NOLO Law for all. The fair use Rule    

Further resources

University System of Georgia - Introduction to the fair use checklist
Columbia University Libraries - Fair Use
Promotiing Fair Use in online video
Myths about Fair Use in Education
What is fair use?
YouBlawg Youtube video & what fair use means

Books to help with your learning
Reclaiming fair use Patricia Auferheide, Peter Jasz
Copyright Clarity: How Fair Use Supports Digital Learning Renee Hobbs

Videos to watch & learn from

Examples of video parodies

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