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Send Us Your Jetlagged, Your Hungry, Your Eldred [ http://www.eldred.cc/ ] Blogs

Donna Wentworth
Copyfight: the politics of IP

October 10, 2002

The spotlight is a funny thing. A reporter asked me yesterday why I support the Eldred challenge, and without warning I suddenly began to channel Robin Hood [ http://www.thecrimson.com/article.aspx?ref=254557 ]. Now I'm, uh, concerned about what I may spontaneously let loose here [ http://research.yale.edu/lawmeme/modules.php?name=Content&pa=showpage&pid=2 ]. (Later: Jenny Levine [ http://www.theshiftedlibrarian.com/ ] says she will spend most of her time in awe of the other presenters [ http://www.theshiftedlibrarian.com/2002/10/10.html#a2916 ]; I second that emotion!)

But I digress. As you can see here [ http://cyber.law.harvard.edu/ ], the Berkman Center crew (especially Charlie [ http://cyber.law.harvard.edu/nesson.html ] ) is excited about all of the blog commentary [ http://jurist.law.pitt.edu/2002_10_06_indexblogarch.htm#85543372 ] flowing from the Eldred hearing--especially first-person accounts like this one [ http://appellateblog.blogspot.com/2002_10_01_appellateblog_archive.html#85544130 ] (How Appealing). If you have notes to share--and haven't already shared them--please do [ donna@cyber.law.harvard.edu ]. The spotlight is yours.

Update: For those of you just now tuning in, here is my guide to the commentary so far:

The Showdown [ http://www.corante.com/copyfight/20021001.shtml#8425 ]
The Showdown II [ http://www.corante.com/copyfight/20021001.shtml#8447 ]
The Showdown III [ http://www.corante.com/copyfight/20021001.shtml#8453 ]

And finally, it turns out that the Lessig/Radin webcast I mentioned [ http://www.corante.com/copyfight/20021001.shtml#8425 ] won't be happening today after all. It will take place on Monday instead. Watch Kathryn Yu at the Lessig site [ http://cyberlaw.stanford.edu/lessig/ ] for updates; she says she may have a URL in advance.

Update #2: Charlie Nesson [ http://cyber.law.harvard.edu/nesson.html ] just walked into my office and we spoke for a bit about blogs and the Eldred case. He echoed the sentiments of this Lawmeme reader [ http://www.well.com/~juanfe/ ], who wrote, "[It] seemed, from the questions presented by the Justices, that they were still conceptualizing publication (of derivative or new works that incorporate others' materials) as something done only by a relative few rather than the many."

Charlie suggested that one way of demonstrating to the Justices that the nature of publishing has changed is to engage in a debate of the big questions of this case within the online environment itself. He said they will be sure to keep on top of any intelligent debate on these questions.

And he didn't stop there. Charlie also thinks that blogs are key to keeping the copyfight conversation/debate alive beyond the hearing--beyond this single "coalescing event."

An important reminder. It's not over when it (this case) is over.

Update #3: This article [ http://rtnews.globetechnology.com/servlet/ArticleNews/tech/RTGAM/20021010/gtcopyp/Technology/techBN/ ] puts the spotlight on the spotlight: Case Puts Copyright in Public Spotlight [Brian Kelcey, Globe and Mail Update].

Update #4: Ernie [ http://radio.weblogs.com/0104634/ ]: Eldred--It's All Over But the Scrivening [ http://radio.weblogs.com/0104634/2002/10/10.html#a1207 ].