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Piracy on the Choppy Copyright (C)s

This week, the Digital Natives crew has been thinking about digital creativity and piracy. On Monday, Berkman intern Diana Kimball discussed what is for many digital natives an invisible line between right and wrong when it comes to downloading music, and yesterday, Amina Waheed suggested that youth engagement is crucial in dealing with the piracy issue. You can check out the Digital Natives blog for more ruminations on piracy--including the classic Reporters in the Field video trilogy, The Ballad of Zach McCune.

In Born Digital, John Palfrey and Urs Gasser argue that placing kids in the position of a creator is a key means for helping them become aware of and think through intellectual property and licensing, so the Digital Natives project is also building a web-based creative rights curriculum for middle schoolers. The curriculum is still under development, but there's an opportunity for you to get a sneak peak November 5 at the ICA in Boston.

The Digital Natives aren't the only ones with piracy and creativity on their minds. Professor Lawrence Lessig's new book, REMIX: Making Art and Commerce Thrive in the Hybrid Economy, is out, and he's published an op-ed in the Wall Street Journal on the subject.

Finally, we'll leave you with the trailer for RiP: A Remix Manifesto, an upcoming movie on these themes...

Update (10/23): Digital Natives intern Kanupriya Tewari gives an international perspective on digital piracy.

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Projects & Tools 01

Youth and Media

Youth and Media (YaM) encompasses an array of research, advocacy, and development initiatives around youth (age 12-18) and digital technology.


Publications 01

Sep 1, 2008

Born Digital: Understanding the First Generation of Digital Natives

Based on original research and advancing new theories, leading internet and technology experts John Palfrey and Urs Gasser offer a sociological portrait of the 'Born Digital'…