I’ve been busy working on the design and content for the “new and improved” the red thread blog [due later this month -yay!] and part of that includes compiling copyright and usage info for tutorials, free printables and downloads. So I’ve been thinking a lot about how people share and give credit for things they find on the internet.
Have you seen this?
There was a lot of discussion about Pinterest and intellectual property and crediting around the blogs earlier this year. The image above is from LINKwithlove, and it’s part of the Pinterest Project. “A kind social media experiment to reach as many Pinterest users as possible (and Pinterest) to raise awareness about the importance of LINKING to the original source + respecting intellectual property online.”
LINKwithlove is all about creating awareness and being mindful and respectful when we share on the internet – on our blogs as well as on Pinterest or any form of social media. The original source always deserves a credit. It’s not enough to credit an image on a blog as “found on Pinterest”, or the with the word “via” or “neon clutch” or something similar as the link. It’s just as easy and far more respectful and kind for the link to be the name of the artist/ etsy seller / shop, etc.
I recently admired a ring on a blog. The link was “found here”. I clicked through to another blog to find a link with the word “via”. I clicked again. And again. I went through seven different blogs (I’m not exaggerating) and gave up in the end when the link was to the home page of a another blog and not to the actual post. It wasn’t the blog of the person who created the ring. None of the links were to the original source and none of the bloggers named the designer/maker/seller. I don’t know where that blog trail ended, but I do know that it didn’t end in a sale. It was frustrating for me, but more than that – incredibly unfair and frustrating for the person selling the ring. Have you experienced something similar to this?
LINKwithlove talks about sharing in a way that is ethical, respectful, educated and kind. It’s not hard.
Please pin and blog the image above from LINKwithlove. Grab a LINKwithlove button for your blog and show your support and spread the word.
Further reading: a great article on Pinterest from LoveLife blog, and one titled “Pinterest is changing how I blog” from Living Locurto.
There has also been a lot of discussion about Pinterest and copyright implications for users and creatives… that’s a whole other minefield!
I’m currently not on Pinterest – I keep changing my mind about it. It’s like finding someone you’re really attracted to but you just can’t commit to starting a relationship because of niggling doubts!
Edit: I forgot to mention I recently discovered that you can use TinEye to do a reverse search to try to find the source of an image.
Edit (again): I just came across a post on A Subtle Revelry with detailed steps on another way to find the original source of an image.