I was unfortunate enough to be out of town this past Thursday when the great Copyright expert, Jason Hardin, was guest lecturing in our Computer Skills class! However, talking with some of my friends in the class, I learned a thing or two about copyright. Firstly, I learned that in 2008, Trinity authorized the Higher Education Opportunity Act. The act makes sure that every year, students learn about copyright infringements (what is acceptable and what is not); the school must make a plan to fight illegal file sharing; there has to be a system that is an alternative to unauthorized file sharing.
Secondly, I started to think about music downloading in a different way. As a college student, I know that I do not have much extra money for music and neither do most of my friends. But I love a constant incoming flow of new music. That makes a dilemma because music is getting more and more expensive. What is a poor college student to do?? Most college students who live on campuses without acts like the Higher Education Opportunity Act download music illegally and share unauthorized files. It is bad, but in my mind, it is understandable.
Sharing unauthorized files such as music is a controversial business because it does take away from the artists who created it, but people love music and it is expensive. On one side, illegally downloading files is completely unacceptable because it is stealing someone else's work. On the other hand, an individual can make it right in their mind by saying, "One song is $1.29, the same price as a hamburger from McDonalds. Why should I have to choose between music and food?" Of course, I will abide by the law, as should everyone else, but it is a controversial subject where both sides deserve to be heard.
Copyright Copyright Copyright!!! by Morgan Fisher is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.
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