What does Original Content and Plagiarism mean for Bloggers?
Buzz it
Plagiarism has been an ongoing plight ever since the invention of the written word and the blogosphere is no exception. So today I will attempt to resolve this issue (hopefully) once and for all.
Recently reader Jaffer asked the question:
I think people do have trouble understanding “Original content”.
For example if there exist several articles on how to go about installing a Widget, and then I go about writing another article on the same subject but not adding much to the existing articles out there - does that mean that my article is not very original?
What is Plagiarism?
Plagiarism is stealing someone else’s ideas and presenting them as your own … the false presentation of someone else’s writing as one’s own … in the case of copyrighted work, plagiarism is illegal ... it is the act of appropriating the literary composition of another author, or excerpts, ideas, or passages therefrom, and passing the material off as one’s own creation … using another person’s ideas or creative work without giving credit to that person ... presenting the words or ideas of someone else as your own without proper acknowledgement of the source ... plagiarism is the act of copying or borrowing the work or ideas of another author without acknowledgement ... students who are writing essays, reports, dissertations or theses must list their sources, such as books and journal articles, in a list of references appended to their work.
You will note that in the above definition I’ve specifically highlighted the word “ideas”. It’s no coincidence that the word “ideas” is mentioned so often.
In the literary world all written work is automatically assumed to be “copyrighted”, and in blog terms the word “references” means providing links to the original source of the material.
Most of us understand that quoting someone else’s work word-for-word without a reference to the original work is an absolute no-no. (Notice how I said “most”). But it seems that many of us still don’t know that it is just as wrong to add to someone else’s “ideas” without references either.
This seems to be the crux of the problem because so many bloggers today think it is alright to take someone else’s “ideas” and “pass it off” as their own work so long as they just alter the wording a little. But as we can see they are still adding to the original author’s concept or “idea“.
In plain and simple terms it is wrong not to give credit to the author of the original “idea“.
Now take a look at a typical Creative Commons licence that many blogs use:
Attribution (by)
“This license lets others distribute, remix, tweak, and build upon your work, non-commercially, as long as they credit you for the original creation.”
“Original Content” means just that — an original “idea” or concept, and what do you think “build upon your work” and “credit” mean? (Rhetorical question). You don’t need to be a genius or even a lawyer to understand that means adding to someone else’s ideas and linking to the original source.
Some licences may even state that you can’t make a “derivative” of their work. Meaning, adding to their idea is not allowed even if you should reference them with a link.
This Isn’t Rocket Science
Straightforward eh? But apparently the pro blogger / splogger crowd hasn’t quite figured that out yet, and their inability (or unwillingness) to grasp this simple concept of original content and plagiarism boggles the mind.
So as we can see it’s not just about directly copying information word-for-word (although that is a big problem as well). The bottom line is ripping-off (plagiarising) someone else’s “idea“ and adding to it without a link is in fact wrong.
So let’s take a look at Jaffer’s example above. In this case it is already known there are articles written on how to install a doo-dad widget, but Jaffer has a different (or better) approach to accomplishing the same thing.
So even though his approach might be a little different it would be appropriate to provide a link to these original source(s) because he is making a “derivative” work and “building”upon someone else’s original “idea” or work.
If it were me I would mention (with a link) that so-and-so has already written on the topic but I found a different way to install the widget. After all, when your readers search Google they are going to find the other author’s work as well as yours. So why not be up-front about it from the start?
Another way of looking at it might be if we have a different opinion or another way of looking at the same issue that someone else has written about. It would only be appropriate to add to the conversation by linking to the original author on the topic. (By the way, that also means not just linking only to our friends within our little network/clique or if they happen to have a great pagerank). If however we are the first to write on that topic then of course that would be considered truly “original content“.
Why is this so important? Well despite the fact that it is wrong not to, referencing the original article is a good idea because it adds value to the conversation in the blogging community – and that is what the blogosphere is supposed to be all about.
Most of us understand that we can’t be an island unto ourself in the blogosphere (unless of course if we don’t want any readers). So when the original author on the topic finds your trackback link they will probably come over to your blog and check you out. They might even add a comment and who knows, they might also subscribe to your blog and become a regular reader. 
We also know that linking (both incoming and outgoing) is the stuff that Google uses to determine our blog authority and pagerank. So no matter which way you look at it, it just makes sense to link to the original source of your inspiration.
So if you search Google or your newsreader and take the best “ideas” from other writers and alter the words a little to “pass it off” as your own work (like so many problogger / sploggers do) without linking to the original source(s), then that would be considered stealing another blogger’s “ideas” and “plagiarism“.
It’s the “idea” or “concept” that matters, not only just the words or images. That’s why they call it ”intellectual property”.
It’s no different than copying someone else’s term paper in school. Taking the meat of someone else’s argument and trying to “pass it off” as our own work without a bibliography is considered cheating. No self-respecting teacher would allow us to get away with that.
The “idea” or “concept” behind what we write is important and credit should be given where credit is due. It’s the same reason why we should link to the person who first brought something to our attention that inspired us to write. Why? Because they were the one who first tipped us off and besides, we just know that it’s the right thing to do. That’s why. It’s also a great way to make new friends when they discover our trackback.
That is why I will often search to see if anyone else has already written something on the topic before I hit the publish button. Although I might not always be successful I try my best to make sure that I have something of value to add to the conversation and reference the other source where appropriate. That is only fair and right.
Sometimes of course mistakes will happen but it is the problogger /splogger crowd that intentionally steals content that I am concerned about. Unfortunately this is a disease running rampant throughout the blogosphere and the problogger / sploggers are the biggest offenders of all because they desperately want to feed the search engines and establish themselves as a so-called authority on a topic in order to make money.
Desperate times require desperate measures (or so they think). They have no compunction to raiding the blogosphere for “ideas” and “passing it off” as their own original work. In fact some even boast about it and recommend that their readers do the same. Outrageous!
After all, who can possibly keep churning out original material on a daily basis? It’s not easy (if not impossible) and don’t I know it from personal experience. I can’t count the number of times that my “ideas”have been ripped-off (plagiarised) by the problogger / splogger crowd.
It’s disgusting and I really don’t how they can sleep at night. Or maybe it’s the ca-ching of the cash register that keeps them feeling all warm and fuzzy. Making lots of money can hide a multitude of sins (or so they think).
As you know, the problogger / splogger crowd read this blog and lurk here regularly (and more recently even sent me a virus). But how many times have they actually contributed something positive to this blog? How many times have they ever linked to me despite the fact that they regularly raid my archives and “bounce off” my “ideas“? (Another word they like to use for stealing content).
Answer: Hardly ever, except for the odd time to flame me when I have to give them a kick in the pants. For shame.
Addendum
The purpose of this post is to discuss the issue of “original content”, rampant “plagiarism” and how it applies specifically to us bloggers. It is not intended to argue the strict legal definition of copyright (if there is such a thing) or what is enforceable under law.
For example copyright law is notoriously porous and something that is a favorite topic for lawyers to debate, and although copyright might not necessarily protect our “ideas” under certain circumstances, our “ideas” are still patentable and trademarkable under law. It is also one of the reasons why the courts today are so clogged with law suites. In legal terms it’s called “passing off“.
If you are still confused here is a great resource that explains the difference between “plagiarism” and “copyright“:
Plagiarism and Copyright—What Are the Differences?
In a nutshell:
Plagiarism is using someone else’s idea (usually a written idea) without giving proper credit for the idea—a failure to cite adequately.
Copyright infringement is using someone else’s creative idea, which can include a song, a video, a movie clip, a piece of visual art, a photograph, and other creative works, without authorization or compensation, if compensation is appropriate.
Then there is the matter of “fair use” and “derivative” works. Sound complicated?
How all this will apply to bloggers is still in flux because the law is a living, breathing organism, always adapting and changing and has yet to catch up to the technology. Newer laws still need to be legislated and precedents have yet to be made.
But more importantly we all know in our hearts what is right and what is wrong. We know if we’re cheating or not. So please do what is right and save the legal arguments for the courts.
Remember, the blogosphere is unique in the field of writing. Until blogging came along writing was primarily a solo vocation. But with the invention of the hyperlink, for the first time since the dawn of man the world is now wired to engage in a universal conversation.
This is indeed an empowering technology, and with power also comes responsibility. So let’s use it with integrity.
Filed under: *Best Articles, Blog Ethics, Featured Articles, Miscellaneous Blog Tips, Misguided, Opinion, Reader Questions, Writing Blog Content
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should big companies sue small blogs for copyright infringement? I mean if it uses excerpt a site that they like, would the company just treat it as link love?
Remy’s last blog post..Promotional Spring Break Products
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That’s the point Remy. If the blog has provided a “link”, and so long as there is no “derivative” warnings made by the business, then that would be appropriate.
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I wonder if the trackbacks I get are plagiarism. They will be excerpts of my posts, with links back to me and the original post, but will say things like “Unknown wrote…” or they make up a completely different name for me. Where does that fall in all of this?
Kirsten’s last blog post..Music on Mondays - V-Cat the Complete List
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I would call it spam Kirsten. There’s a nice plugin I use that works well with Akismet called Simple Trackback Validation. It really helps to weed them out.
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Yeah, I use Akismet, which is doing a better job every day of keeping them out of my comments queue. Tan Tan Noodles works pretty darn good too. I was just wondering if these touched on the copyright issue since while they link to me, they give me an alias that I don’t use.
Kirsten’s last blog post..Music on Mondays - V-Cat the Complete List
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I have the same problem Kirsten. They copy an excerpt of mine and then use a different alias for the author name but still link to me. Since most of them have ads I’m wondering if a complaint to the ad provider might put the nail in their coffin - i.e. a complaint to Adsense for example.
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I thought I would add that the above example Kirsten gave is a good example of fraud (i.e. changing the author’s name) but unfortunately the laws right now haven’t caught up to the blogosphere. We need to pressure our legislators to bring the laws up to speed in the electronic age.
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You caught me Bloke. (I hang my head in shame). Thanks for clearing things up btw. I wish I could try out the Askimet plugin but unfortunately my blog’s got the bug and I’m trying to recover my lost articles and I hope to be restored by next week.
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Oh crap! Not you too!
Sorry to hear about that Jaffer. You had better read this:
http://www.blogbloke.com/how-much-security-is-enough/
to find the disaster utilities you’re gonna need.
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I blog to post my photos for others to enjoy. I guess I lose my rights to them when I put them out there for anyone to copy. Teri
Tica Macha (Teri)’s last blog post..Tuuuuesday
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Not necessarily Teri. Read this:
http://www.2learn.ca/copyright/images.html
Of course they can always steal it.
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I think that you are way too nice. There is outrageous copyright violations going on at the moment, especially from the splogger type blogs that have exploded in the last six months. Ethics are non existent and content is very derivative. I am on Entrecard and it is rarely that I find something that I think is worth subscribing too. Too much copycat stuff.
People need to understand that it is theft, especially since they are seeking to profit on it. One of the posts I read, I copied the first three paragraphs into Google and it was an exact copy from the top ranked Google Search term for the topic, all three pages. Outrageous. No link, no reference and the representation that the author had thought it up for the benefit of the readers (and not his advertising revenue).
Great post.
Colin Campbell’s last blog post..Hamburger Helper II Marks Ten Years
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Colin, I blame the problogger leaders who encourage this sort of nonsense and don’t spend near enough time discussing blog ethics. It’s all about the money for some.
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Hi,
I have found a very useful site for plagiarism checking,its 100% free and a great tool for teachers, students, bloggers and types of content writers.
plagiarism software
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I was searching on plagiarism and am glad i came across this site. I wanted to know what constitutes plagiarism because I’ve come across so many food blogs with the same recipe (exactly the same) which means…someone got the idea from someone else! How about recipes with the same name - with variations in the ingredients and the amount of the ingredients. Is that plagiarism? If someone modifies a base recipe and creates a new dish…does that mean taking someone else’s idea? Afterall the product can be truly very different…So now I’m still just as confused as I started! Yikes!
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Making variations of someone’s recipe is Ok so long as they are giving credit to the original creator(s). That’s the beauty of the internet. How hard is it to make a simple hyperlink?
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Blog Bloke (@blogbloketips) reply on July 18th, 2008 2:58 pm:
@BLOGBloke Although content creator would always have option to remove full copies. Do you think the guidelines should be stronger?
via Twitoaster
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[…] primary motivation is to turn coin, or who write BS posts with information they’ve plagiarized from other sources to establish themselves as a so-called authority with the […]
[…] Blog Bloke offers some great tips and advice relating to blogging What does Original Content and Plagiarism mean for Bloggers? […]
[…] to search Google for what someone else has written. Try to be original, and especially do not plagiarize. Remember, SCEP (Search, Copy, Edit and Paste) is bad, bad, […]
[…] Fact: Knowledge comes from education and experience, and since there are no blogging degrees currently being offered, that just leaves… well, you know. So get some knowledge first before you try pass yourself off as an expert, and above all — don’t plagiarize. […]
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[…] 6. Bloggers should be passionate about their topics as well as credible. Bore your readers and you can be sure they won’t come back. Do your homework but don’t just regurgitate what you read elsewhere. They call that plagiarism. […]
[…] The blogosphere is a living, breathing organism that relies on all of its parts to make it work. Bloggers who play by the rules will benefit. But those who don’t are a cancer making the blogosphere dysfunctional. (You can read more about disfunctional bloggers at What does Original Content and Plagiarism mean for Bloggers?) […]
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