I’m in Los Angeles for the College Art Association annual conference. There are an estimated 5,000 art historians, professors of fine arts, students of fine arts, and practicing artists here. Spread throughout the Los Angeles Convention Center, sessions cover a wide range of topics that would seem to intrigue the most advanced scholar – from [...]

It’s never been very clear to me why we should believe an infringing P2P network that enables illegal transport of copyrighted works when they say they want to protect their users from identity theft. They have a financial motive to ensure users don’t become victims, thus getting angry, deleting the program, and badmouthing it to [...]

Creativity is alive and well in this country, and I’m talking about old-fashioned creativity, where artists create works using only artistic tools and their own imagination, rather than cannibalize the creativity of someone else.
I’m still on a high after an art awards ceremony for northern Virginia students last night, a regional contest that sends the [...]

If anyone out there still doubts the connection between fostering economic incentives for the creation of new works and the health of the economy of that country, please read the 2009 International Property Rights Index, an impressive study conducted by 2008 Hernando de Soto Fellow Anne Chandima Dedigama and sponsored by the Property Rights Alliance. [...]

Today’s guest blog is from Dan Glickman, Chairman and CEO of the Motion Picture Association of America.
What do Brad Pitt, Anne Hathaway and Mickey Rourke have in common? Yes, they are all nominated for one of Hollywood’s biggest awards – an Oscar®. But, all three of these actors were also a part of [...]

A free-culture web site sponsored by the CE industry likes to point out this:
Digital technology enables anyone and everyone to be an artist and an innovator - to produce music, to create cutting edge films and videos, and to reach new audiences.
I agree. And I think we can all agree that not all of [...]

For some years, writers have creatively sought alternative places and strategic partnerships to reach greater, more diverse audiences. Gone are the days when fiction and poetry are meant to be enjoyed – in solitude – on the couch or at the beach.
The departure from the traditional surface for writers has led to an exploration [...]

CHICAGO — Imagine you’re an organizer here at the annual Association of Writers & Writing Conference (AWP). Imagine you’ve scheduled a breakout session called “Shameless Book Promotion.” Imagine you put it in a room in which the fire marshal has determined no more than 150 people can fit.
Then imagine 350 people show up.
That was my [...]

CHICAGO – I’m here at the Association of Writers & Writing Programs Annual Conference & Bookfair in the Windy City, which fortunately hasn’t been too windy so far. Lucinda and I are here exhibiting and providing free resources to writers and writing teachers. I’m in my element here; during my freelance writing career I attended [...]

Iconic folk singer/songwriter Tom Paxton has been awarded a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award by the Recording Academy. J. Freedom du Lac has a nice profile on him in Sunday’s The Washington Post.
On May 17th, 2007, Mr. Paxton graciously spoke at the launch of the Copyright Alliance; he was one of four songwriters there, joining Lamont [...]