A longstanding challenge with regard to websites that profit from pirated media, counterfeit products, and/or malware is the frequent placement of major brand advertising on the pages of those sites.  Musician David Lowery’s activist website The Trichordist has published lists of major advertisers whose banner ads have appeared on various pirate sites, seeking to hold advertisers accountable for supporting exploitation of musical artists. ...

It often seems as though each time an artist, let alone a legend, pays homage to the past, some pundit with an axe to grind on copyright seizes the moment to declare the contemporary law restrictive to creative development.  Variations on the theme of “artists could never do that today” have been trotted out in essays, some thoughtful, others not ...

Last week, The Los Angeles Times reported that the 7,000 officers of the LAPD will soon be wearing body cameras to record their interactions while on duty.  Communities that have employed these cameras have reported significant decreases in the number of claims of police misconduct (reductions as impressive as 90%), and it is fair to assume those statistics represent both ...

I frequently encounter comments on this blog and around the web reiterating the thematic question as to whether or not “artists should be paid as much as they are.” The inquiry is typically posed by contrasting the arts to other professions we likely consider more critical, like emergency medicine or teaching or epidemiology.  This attitude is a bit of a ...

An open letter supporting intellectual property was sent today to the 114th Congress.  The majority of its signatories are conservative political organizations, which is reflective of the now-Republican majority in both houses; but the letter is also signed by several left-leaning organizations as well as academics representing non-partisan study groups and think tanks.  Titled Intellectual Property Guidelines, the letter briefly outlines ...