Society for Cinema and Media Studies Statement on Fair Use

The latest issue of the Society for Cinema and Media Studies' Cinema Journal carries a detailed explanation/interpretation of the Library of Congress' exemption allowing film and media studies professors to create digital clips from legally-obtained DVDs housed in college and university libraries. These may be used in the classroom or on electronic courseware sites as long as such activity is restricted to matriculaters and measures are taken to thwart copying and downloading of the material. The Society for Cinema and Media Studies’ Statement of Best Practices for Fair Use in Teaching for Film and Media Educators makes for a good reference for practitioners and librarians alike. The exemption lasts until Oct. 29, 2009, at which point it may be renewed.