Carrie On Copyright- Is it Kosher to Copy?

Is it legal to copy pictures from a book that's being used in a presentation to a school group? No admission will be charged, and the book relates to our curriculum.
-- Sheila Rathsam, library media specialist, Spaulding School, Gunree, IL

Remember the days when opaque projectors were popular? For you youngsters out there, these 'ancient' audiovisual machines enabled librarians to display pictures found in books to large groups. No copies were made-the book itself was simply slid into the projector. The only exclusive right of copyright used was the right to publicly display. Nowadays, most of us are using Power Point or overhead transparencies. Which means making a copy first and then a public display. So are we committing a 'double infringement'? Yes and, of course, no. This is another way of saying, 'It depends.'

Sheila notes some particular circumstances-notably that the presentation is for teaching purposes, and copyright law allows specific exemptions for nonprofit educational purposes. This means that some activities that would ordinarily be infringing are not. Section 110 of the copyright law describes instances when copyrighted works can be performed or displayed to the public in face-to-face teaching without prior permission from the copyright holder. But what about the copying part?

Turn to Section 107, our favorite section called 'fair use.' Consider the four factors-the purpose of the use, the amount being used, the nature of the publication, and the effect on the market. Within reasonable limits, and in particular, for nonprofit educational purposes, copies from copyrighted works can be lawfully made.

But don't go overboard. Copying should be limited and should not be done to avoid purchasing a copyrighted work. A picture here and there, a map, graph, or photo from one source or another used in a Power Point presentation for class instruction sounds to me exactly what the copyright law is all about-making works available to the public to advance learning. But be careful. Once your Power Point presentation goes on the Web, it could be available to individuals outside of the classroom and that may change the fair use equation. If so, I would password protect the site.

We are making plans for Young People's Poetry Week in April. We'd like to create poetry postcards that will consist of a poem, the poet's name, a brief biographical statement, and the bibliographic information of the book that the poem came from. The postcards will be available for patrons to take when they check out materials. Do we need to check with the publishers of the poetry books before we create our postcards?
-- Pat Stone, children's librarian, Rodman Public Library, Alliance, OH

Neat idea! But yes, you should check with the copyright holder before proceeding unless the poems are in the public domain. The poems are in the public domain if 75 years have passed since the poet's death, assuming the poet is the copyright holder. If this is the case, you can use the poem in any way you choose. But let's not pop the Champagne cork yet. Many of the poems you want to use may have been more recently published, so someone (probably the poet) holds the right to make reproductions (copies) or derivative works (such as poetry postcards).

I would begin my search for the copyright holder with the publisher. The publisher should be able to put you in contact with the poet or advise you as to the poet's wishes. It'll be easier if the poet has consistently published with the same publisher over time, but you may find that the poet has published poems with various publishers. Keep a record of your conversations with publishers and poets and make an effort to get the permission to use the poem in writing. In your permission letter, provide complete information on Poetry Week and include the number of copies you plan to make of the postcards. I anticipate that the poet or publisher will give you permission to use the poems for library postcards, since you are promoting the poem and poetry publications and you are not making a profit.