For our latest Copyright Corner Q&A series installment, Re:Create spoke with Nathan Proctor, U.S. PIRG’s Right to Repair Campaign Director. Proctor explains the intersection between the right to repair and copyright law, and how manufacturers have weaponized and abused copyright protections to limit consumers’ abilities to fix products. Proctor also discusses the growing momentum in support of consumers fixing or…

The Tillis-Leahy SMART Copyright Act of 2022 Myths v Facts Myth: The legislation is necessary. Fact: The U.S. Copyright Office specifically concluded that legislation is not needed and that “the development of STMs depends upon voluntary collaboration and consultation within and across industries” after five years of studying Section 512 of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA). The DMCA already…

Despite its name, the Journalism Competition and Preservation Act, S. 673, does not stimulate competition among the biggest media corporations and fails to preserve local news jobs. In reality, the bill will exacerbate existing challenges from media consolidation, deter journalist hiring and overhaul copyright law to disrupt access to information online. The legislation’s stated purpose is to give local news…

Trust in mass media has hit an all-time low. One bright spot? Americans trust local media far more than other news sources. Alarmingly, this hard-earned trust is at risk of eroding away as local news outlets are decimated from buyouts by massive media corporations. After missing quarterly earnings projections, Gannett, the largest U.S. newspaper owner responsible for publishing more than…

Local journalism is in trouble. In the past 15 years, a quarter of newspapers in the U.S have closed, and financial management companies have bought half of the daily newspapers. The death of newspapers impacts communities as well as the individuals who lose their jobs. Areas of the country that don’t have reliable newspaper outlets tend to have higher rates…