admin post: image policy addition second draft

[aethel]

So, a while back the Wiki Committee posted drafts of additional policy bits (to use the technical term). Since then, we updated the wiki itself with item #2, the proposed addition to the Identity Protection page. (See the change to the Identity Protection page.) Still remaining to be added are the Image Policy and Editorial Procedures additions. (I don't think there were any issues with the Editorial Procedures revision, which represented only a change in phrasing, not in policy, so we will try to get that on the wiki pronto.)

See below for the second draft of the addition to the Image Policy FAQ. This will be a numbered addition following question 8. It is intended to complement the change to the Identity Protection page.

I am a fanartist, and I don't want to have my name displayed on my fanart.

If you are/were active in fandom under your legal name, but feel uncomfortable with some or all of your art being associated with this name, we can offer you two options (per our identity protection and pre-1995 name policies): we can either edit the artwork's information so that it is associated with whatever pseud you choose, or we can "orphan" the artwork. If a piece of fanart is orphaned, it can still be shown on the wiki (as it is still part of our fannish history), but no name will be attached to it, and we can also blur or remove any signature which appears in the image itself.

Questions? Concerns? Let us know what you think!

ETA November 24: Revisions are now live on the wiki. Thanks!
Editorial Procedures
Image Policy

Comments

[extempore]

It's a bit of a side-step, but currently I'm struggling with another image-related issue, as described on the Doujinshi page: The question of whether it's allowed to post images that are - under our laws - a violation of copyright (namely scanlations) and in relation to that links to scanlation groups as well (i.e. to distributors of illegal content). I'm not knowledgable in Japanese legal matters at all, but seeing as it's common practice - even for well known manga artists! - to draw doujinshi, I suspect there is either a clause which allows for it or some form of silent code in the industry.

[extempore]

Ah, I should add, that most scanlation groups have a policy of only translating unlicenced manga and stopping the scanlation once some western... okay, let's not kid: once some US company bought the rights to it. So the scanlations might as well have been made at a time when there was no other source for a translation, but probably is translated by now. (Although, especially in the case of doujinshi that's rather unlikely.)

[onceamy]

Oh. None of us are lawyers, and this occurs to me that it may need the opinion of one -- can I take your query to our Legal committee and get back to you?

[extempore]

Certainly, thank you!

[onceamy]

I've emailed Legal for you! Sorry about the delay!

[aethel]

paraphrasing from Legal: using a portion of a scanlation to make a point about that particular scanlation or about scanlating in general/the history of scanlation/etc is fair use and A-OKAY. We just don't want to host entire scanlated runs of manga, etc.

Also, linking to (potentially) infringing content is not itself illegal. /end paraphrase

I think there's a guideline somewhere on the wiki (can't find it at the moment) that amounts to "don't link to megaupload doctor who downloads and say 'here's how to get the episodes!!1!' " But otherwise there's generally no reason not to link to public content for citation/illustration purposes unless it violates our identity protection policy.

[extempore]

Thank you for the clarification!

I wanted to add two scans per doujinshi, the cover art and one scan from the interior, because often the two wildly diverge. And since it's proper fan custom to name all involved in a project, I also name the scanlation group, if I know them. I can refrain from linking to that group, if that's too much of a grey matter though. (But then we'd have to stop linking to a lot of fan communites as well, as they often distribute anime or manga - aarinfantasy, for example, or a lot of LJ groups.)

I do think it's a difference in linking to a fan community/endeavour where one can get scans and eps and linking to a site like tokyou toshokan, which is purely a torrent tracker site for all things asian TV. Furthermore, there are sites like Manganews.net that link to scanlators, so as the peeps in OTW legal said, it doesn't seem to be an illegal practice.

[onceamy]

As I understood Legal, linking to the group that made the scanlation is perfectly legal. If you want to PM me your email address, I can forward on their exact email(s) to reassure you?

[extempore]

That won't be necessary, thank you. I just don't want to hurt Fanlore unwittingly, so I thought I'd make sure.