Education "fair dealing" impact highlighted in mainstream media

Wednesday, November 12, 2014

Two of Canada’s major newspapers have recently highlighted the impact of educational “fair dealing” on Canadian writers and publishers.

The past weekend saw this write-up in the Toronto Star which delved into the impact on creators of the decision by many educational institutions to no longer pay for copying normally made under an Access Copyright licence. Affiliates such as Evan Munday and Harry Thurston are quoted in the article along with Writers’ Union of Canada executive director John Degen. Degen himself brought up the issue of educational “fair dealing” in this piece he wrote for the Globe and Mail website.

Both of these articles are part of a larger conversation that has started about the difficulties of creators to make a living from creating. The dialogue commenced when Globe and Mail columnist and published writer Elizabeth Renzetti asked, “When Iggy Pop can’t live off his art, what chance do the rest have?” and writer and Access Copyright affiliate Camilla Gibb answered with her own struggles to become a published writer.

Access Copyright has also waded into this issue with this call for balance in educational “fair dealing.”