Moral Panics and the Copyright WarsMetaphors, moral panics, folk devils, Jack Valenti, Joseph Schumpeter, John Maynard Keynes, predictable irrationality, and free market fundamentalism are a few of the topics covered in this lively, unflinching examination of the Copyright Wars: the pitched battles over new technology, business models, and most of all, consumers. In Moral Panics and the Copyright Wars, William Patry lays bare how we got to where we are: a bloated, punitive legal regime that has strayed far from its modest, but important roots. Patry demonstrates how copyright is a utilitarian government program--not a property or moral right. As a government program, copyright must be regulated and held accountable to ensure it is serving its public purpose. Just as Wall Street must serve Main Street, neither can copyright be left to a Reaganite "magic of the market." The way we have come to talk about copyright--metaphoric language demonizing everyone involved--has led to bad business and bad policy decisions. Unless we recognize that the debates over copyright are debates over business models, we will never be able to make the correct business and policy decisions. A centrist and believer in appropriately balanced copyright laws, Patry concludes that calls for strong copyright laws, just like calls for weak copyright laws, miss the point entirely: the only laws we need are effective laws, laws that further the purpose of encouraging the creation of new works and learning. Our current regime, unfortunately, creates too many bad incentives, leading to bad conduct. Just as President Obama has called for re-tooling and re-imagining the auto industry, Patry calls for a remaking of our copyright laws so that they may once again be respected. |
Contents
| 1 | |
CHAPTER 2 The Role of Metaphors in Understanding | 43 |
CHAPTER 3 Metaphors and the Law | 57 |
CHAPTER 4 The Mythical Origins of Copyright and Three Favorite Copyright Metaphors | 61 |
CHAPTER 5 Property as Social Relationships | 97 |
CHAPTER 6 Why Classifying Copyright as Property Is Important in the Copyright Wars | 109 |
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ACAP advertising Arnold Modell artists authors Betamax business model cellphone claim cognitive companies Congress consumers copy Copyright Act copyright industries copyright owners Copyright Wars corporations create creative culture devils DMCA downloads economic effort emotional endowment effect existing figure film folk devils George Lakoff Google Hollywood incentive infringement innovation Intellectual Property Internet ISPs Jack Valenti Joseph Schumpeter Lakoff language license Lord Louie machines metaphor million monopoly Moral Panics motion picture MPAA Napster natural networks Patry on Copyright percent piracy pirates political Professor property rights protection published Quoted record industry record labels Redbox rental result revenue rhetorical Schumpeter search engines selling simile social Sony studios Supreme Court tape term Theodore Levitt theory things tion unauthorized United University Press Valenti videocassette videocassette recorders Viviane Reding William Patry wrote YouTube