The Idea Farm's Blog

A legal battle between the Andy Warhol Foundation and the photographer Lynn Goldsmith over a portrait of Prince is at the center of a pivotal discussion about copyright. Blame the appeals court judgment from 2021 declaring that Andy Warhol had no right to appropriate someone else’s photo of Prince into one of the Pop artist’s classic silk-screened portraits.  On May 18, 2023 the Supreme Court sided with a photographer in a dispute with the Andy Warhol Foundation over the late artist’s use of her photos as the basis for his own series of portraits of Prince. The justices issued a narrow interpretation focused on one of four factors used by courts to determine the “fair use” of a copyrighted work and the “purpose and character” of the use. The factors include “the nature of a copyrighted work,” “the amount and substantiality of the portion used in relation to the copyrighted work as a whole,” and “the effect of the use upon the potential market for or value of the copyrighted wo...

  If you are a professor or graduate student, you know more about your field of study than most of the writers giving written sermons on opinion pages, Quora pages, Sub-Redditt’s, Twitter feeds, and possibly bookshelves right now. Your research and education informs your point of view. You know what you’re writing about — but commentators might know better how to write for a general audience. This means that the voices who have the most to contribute to public discourse are often getting drowned out. If this is something you struggle with, here are some writing tips to reach a broader audience: Don’t approach your introduction like it’s the warm-up before you get to the good stuff. Approach it like your only chance to attract your reader into your thoughts. Your lead is your opportunity to engage your reader: You’re conveying that your words are worth the reader’s effort. If you have writer’s block, look at the opening paragraphs of a practiced columnist, someone like Maureen Dowd ...

Caren Beilin's novel  Revenge of the Scapegoat , winner of the 2023 Vermont Book Award for fiction, is both comical and tragic.  Revenge is marked by repetition, with an ending that mirrors its beginning. And the substance for its action is the restoration of objects from the protagonist's past that she hoped would never return. The Vermont Book Award, given out annually, "shines a light" on a book and focuses readers' awareness on work they may have otherwise missed. Iris, an adjunct college writing teacher in Philadelphia, thinks of herself the family scapegoat. When she was in her teens, she received two letters from her father that she saw as encapsulating his hatred for her. Now 36, she's left all that behind — until one day both letters reappear in a UPS package from her father. While Dad says he was decluttering the family home, Iris sees the letters as if they were a message from the Unabomber. She depicts them as "things that had torn through me...

  Monday’s Supreme Court showdown in NetChoice v. Paxton and Moody v. NetChoice will determine whether states can forbid social media companies from blocking or removing user content that goes against platform rules. The state laws at issue also allow individuals to sue tech companies for alleged violations. The Florida and Texas laws are loosely written, but officials from both states say the laws will keep social media sites from unfairly muting conservatives and others. Social media platforms have insisted for years that they don’t discriminate against right-wing speech. Signed in 2021 by Gov. Ron DeSantis, Florida’s SB 7072 prohibits tech platforms from suspending or banning the accounts of political candidates in the state, with violations carrying steep possible fines of up to $250,000 per day. It also allows individual social media users to sue platforms if they believe they have been unfairly censored or “deplatformed.” The Texas law, signed in 2021 by Gov. Greg Abbott, m...

Poetry has been used as a glorious expression of sentiment, an avenue for creative idiom, and a of sharing thoughts and emotions throughout the ages. Today, through online communities and blogs, a collection of stanzas can unite people all over the world. Whether you’re a aficionado of classic poetry or more into the modern age, here are blogs and communities perfect for taking pleasure in verse. Deep Underground Poetry This free platform lets you share and publish poems, lyrics, short stories, spoken word and performance poetry. You can also meet other poets, writers and spoken word artists, get critique and improve your writing, take part in poetry competitions and host your own. Every comment you make has a link to your own submissions. Leaving interesting, helpful critique is a great way to get more people to read your work. My poetic side My poetic side was created for the poetry community. Select the "Community" tab to read full poems written by other community members ...

Writing is a means to communicate with a global audience. But how does one manage to write successfully for a broad audience when creating content? Below are some strategies or tips to correct common errors when creating content. The Hurried Edit Everyone has time management concerns and maybe you’ve reread your piece so many times that you’re confident you’ve caught all the mistakes. But taking enough time to thoroughly proofread your post or article is critical. It is essential to good writing. Understand the importance of formatting The structure of your post is important in holding a reader’s attention. Many readers scan or skim articles rather than read them word for word. A big block of text makes this habit difficult and may repel readers.  Tips:  Use bullets and numbered lists when appropriate. These formats are easy to scan and keep readers engaged with the text. Edit to ensure you have relevant information in your article Format links effectively Keep paragraph...

Kevin Palomino - Journalism Scholarship Winner WASHINGTON, Dec. 14, 2023 -- The National Press Club, the leading professional organization for journalists, has chosen  Kevin Palomino  of Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, as the recipient of its Lewis Scholarship for Spring 2024. The scholarship provides housing and a $4,000 stipend to support a student journalist of color interning at a news media outlet in Washington, D.C. Established in 2022, The Lewis Scholarship was founded by the family of former Washington correspondent Robert "Bob" D.G. Lewis. It is awarded to one undergraduate student journalist of color each fall, spring, and summer semester. Students must secure a journalism internship in Washington, D.C., to be eligible, along with  other requirements . "The Lewis Scholarship provides me with an opportunity to grow as a journalist," Palomino said. "During my internship this spring, I plan to use my lived experiences as a first-generation DACA student to diver...