fox | in which fox is pursued by the press!

well, sort of.

okay, here's the deal: in january, in my capacity as owner of the FandomFightsBack group over at yahoogroups, i got the following note from a reporter at the washington post:

i'm doing some research about a possible story about fan fiction and copyright issues.

i was wondering if you might be able to give me an update about what's been going on with the big entertainment companies. have then been continuing to send c&d letters to creators of fan fiction??? also, do you happen to know whether there is a difference in the way people in the states vs. canada vs. europe vs. asia etc. have been reacting to those c&d letters? do most people comply? do you know anyone who has refused to comply and might want to talk about it?

i didn't actually have many answers, but i replied anyway:

i'm doing some research about a possible story about fan fiction and copyright issues.

Indeed. :-) Do you mind if I ask what slant your article plans to take? Not that we, or at least I, won't answer your questions to the best of my knowledge and ability, but it's always good to know where you stand, don't you think?

i was wondering if you might be able to give me an update about what's been going on with the big entertainment companies. have then been continuing to send c&d letters to creators of fan fiction???

The latest big news, I believe, had to do with some Harry Potter fan fiction -- not surprising, given the recent announcement of the publication date of the fifth book. Let me try to get in touch with the recipient of the letter and see if she's cool with discussing it; as I'm sure you're aware, netiquette and decency preclude my just flinging names and issues about with wild abandon, and things that have been discussed among friends on mailing lists aren't necessarily available for public consumption. I'll save your note and get back to you on that one, though.

also, do you happen to know whether there is a difference in the way people in the states vs. canada vs. europe vs. asia etc. have been reacting to those c&d letters?

That, I don't know. I can only recall one (or possibly two) non-US instance(s) of a fan getting a letter, and that was some time ago -- maybe you remember, it was a biggish news item because it involved quite young kids in Britain making fan websites (Harry Potter again). The one I specifically remember was a fifteen-year-old girl, but I have it in my head that there was another site run by a younger boy, and prior to the release of the first movie, Warner Brothers got a little how-big-entertainment-gets and went after them. Neither site included fan fiction, though, if memory serves; the issue in both cases was the domain names and trademark, not copyright, infringement. I can put out some feelers and try to rustle up some non-US-based fans (and there are many) for you to talk to about that.

do most people comply? do you know anyone who has refused to comply and might want to talk about it?

My impression is that most people comply, because they know they can't afford to take on the big companies in a prolonged legal contest -- even if, ethically and legally, they're in the right. But that's just an impression. As for refusing to comply, again, I can put out some feelers and try to come up with some contacts. Sorry I couldn't be more specifically helpful this time around.

it wasn't long before this had completely slipped my mind, what with the second semester hitting me like a ton of bricks and everything, so imagine my surprise when another note from the same reporter turned up in my box on monday:

am so sorry for the (incredibly) delayed response... i got called off on space shuttle coverage and some other stuff and was not able to get back to this story until now but i really do hope to get it in the paper in the next month or so. i was wondering if you might be able to refer me to any creators of fan fiction (maybe related to harry potter?)?? i'm looking both for people who have received c&d letters and those who have not. i'm especially interested in speaking with folks from washington or san francisco but am ofcourse interested in hearing from people all over the states and the world. i'd also like to chat with you about your involvement in the fan fiction world. what's your background? do you write fan fiction as well??

now, i can talk to her about me, but i still don't know where the people with the C&D's are. i'm trying to hunt up the folks who got hit this past winter, and give them the reporter's e-mail address and let them decide whether to talk to her or not; i'm certainly not, as i said in my e-mail in january, going to go handing people's names and e-mail addresses around. if anyone knows things i don't know -- check that. if those of you who know things and people i don't know wouldn't mind, feel free to give people my e-mail address so they can contact me for the reporter's e-mail address if they feel like it. still not sure what angle she's planning to take on the whole thing.

in which fox is pursued by the press!

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