Hard News by Russell Brown

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Hard News: Maoriland Calling

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  • Kyle Matthews,

    Which brings me to: My Hobbyhorse: I would dearly love to see a modest contestable fund to which individuals could apply to have a work digitised by the archive that holds it.

    That's an interesting idea. I wonder if the archivist would respond - that does little good at all except for the person who requested it. It'll lead to little patches of information being digitised, and therefore publicly available.

    To stretch way across forums. If context is important in ascertaining the information that the Dom published the other week, then surely it's important that whole collections of things become available so people can see the context in which they sit?

    Since Nov 2006 • 6243 posts Report Reply

  • webweaver,

    Just a point about Te Ara:

    Te Ara, too, is niggardly over the quality of image it will provide. What's the point? It's not as if the originals will get grubby.

    Many of the images on the Te Ara website don't belong to Te Ara in the first instance - they come from a whole range of different places - from individual photographers who give express permission in writing, through museum and library collections, to New Zealand newspapers.. all of whom, I am guessing, may have different rules and regulations attached to the use of their images, which Te Ara has certainly had to negotiate permission to use. You can see the different copyrights (attributions) at the bottom of each image...

    Wellington • Since Nov 2006 • 332 posts Report Reply

  • Russell Brown,

    Choosing not to use Creative Commons does not necessarily mean instinctively clinging to strict copyright control, nor does asserting copyright mean locking something away so that no-one can experience it.

    I agree. Public Address's contents aren't Creative Commons, in part because, especially with System, so many people's "works" are involved and I don't feel able to to offer a blanket licence for its use. Also, I do need people to read it here, to avoid me having to work for the man in less pleasurable ways.

    The exception is the Lange Oxford Union speech transcript, which I did.I run it as effectively CC, but I'm reminded I need to do that in actual deed now that we have NZ CC licences. I asked a modest fee for The Press to use it once, but otherwise, it's free for non-commercial use.

    Wherein lies another story. I managed to convince Sound Archives to let me have "listening access" to do a transcript for the web: meaning they'd send a CD to Auckland RNZ office that I could only listen to in that office. Let's just say that wasn't quite how it happened.

    But then there was demand for the actual audio. Which I actually had in hand, along with a letter from David Lange and Margaret Pope requesting that I be provided with the recording to use as I saw fit.

    But RNZ sent me on a merry chase to secure rights from the Oxford Union -- who had no rights in the bloody thing anything. (I did call them -- got some student who didn't really know what I was on about.)

    So then I called a Cabinet minister to point out that this did not tally with the fine words of the Digital Content Strategy. Next offer: I could have the recording, but only to make available in a form that could not be downloaded and on a page where no advertising appeared.

    This wasn't good enough. It was important to me that derivative use was permitted. And then, finally, I discovered that RNZ had no copyright in the bloody thing at all. They recording was simply a copy of the audio from the TV coverage held by TVNZ! So I contacted Ian Fraser, who got back within 24 hours to say I could use the audio as I wished.

    We got the derivative use: Tomorrow People's 'Nuclear Weapons Are Morally Indefensible' (The Track), which is under a Creative Commons 2.5 licence. That got played on student radio and -- ta da! -- Radio New Zealand.

    The transcript and the audio are linked to from the Lange article on Wikipedia, and we get traffic to them every day of the year. We also get a link from the folks at NZHistory.net. None of this would have happened if I hadn't bloody insisted that it did. I think there's a lesson in that.

    Auckland • Since Nov 2006 • 22850 posts Report Reply

  • webweaver,

    oooh oohh and this point too:

    Which brings me to: My Hobbyhorse: I would dearly love to see a modest contestable fund to which individuals could apply to have a work digitised by the archive that holds it.

    Some archives are "better" than others in this regard I think. The Gathering documentary that we made a few years ago is stored as part of the Film Archives National Collection, and a couple of years ago they digitised it to screen in a music festival documentary.

    Now that they've got it in digital format, I was able to buy a copy of the DVD version from them (as joint-owner of the copyright) for a mere $30, and when I asked for 2 copies instead of one, it still only cost $30. God knows how much it would have cost to get it digitised myself. A sh*tload more than $30, I'm sure.

    Wellington • Since Nov 2006 • 332 posts Report Reply

  • Shep Cheyenne,

    'macho cultural nationalists'

    I love Hunterwassers Koru Flag

    Like a fern sprouting
    Like a wave of nature
    Like a flag unfolding

    http://liong-faye.org.nz/koru-flag/

    Since Oct 2007 • 927 posts Report Reply

  • Craig Ranapia,

    I would have thought - regardless of how personal or not the view might be - that the book and the series was extending the reach of the museum and gallery collections and that was a good thing!

    YYes, and while 'cultural sensitivity' is a damn fine thing, but I sometimes wonder if it isn't a thick layer of brownwash for institutional/academic power plays and (dare I say it) the kind of guilty white liberalism I find every bit as obnoxious, ill-informed and ultimately patronising as shameless white racism.

    You're obviously more hooked into the arts scene that I, but could you point to any artist who doesn't want their work seen and discussed?

    North Shore, Auckland • Since Nov 2006 • 12370 posts Report Reply

  • Kyle Matthews,

    You're obviously more hooked into the arts scene that I, but could you point to any artist who doesn't want their work seen and discussed?

    I'm sure that's not their reasoning. If like Russell, the use of the material relates to income, then restricting the access to it online and the use of it is obviously of concern. This is all still pretty new, and it's a 'dangerous new world' for a lot of artists, galleries, museums etc.

    For another thing, digital images aren't the same as art, particularly sculptures and installations. Some artists wouldn't allow their material to be put online, because they want people to see the actual artwork.

    Since Nov 2006 • 6243 posts Report Reply

  • Jackie Clark,

    Contrast Te Papa and other NZ public institutions with the British Museum, which is quietly releasing it's collection onto the web

    thankyou, thankyou, thankyou - you just made me cry. I have had a love affair with Durer since first studying his work as part of my art history degree. He, in fact, is my very favourite artist. And lo and behold, the British Museum has an extensive collection of his woodcuts and engravings, and what's more, they are my most beloved of his work. How did I not know this? I've been to the BM a number of times, and never even saw the bloody things. And now, all I can do is look at them on a website. But oh, how wonderful that is. And yes, his work makes me cry.St Jerome in his study, Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse. Such detail, such depth, so much to see every time you look at one of his prints. Extraordinary.<Sigh> I am very very happy.So thankyou, George.

    Mt Eden, Auckland • Since Nov 2006 • 3136 posts Report Reply

  • BenWilson,

    If it ain't online, at least in tidbit/trailer form, I ain't paying to see it. There's an entire planet of free content I've only scratched the surface of.

    Auckland • Since Nov 2006 • 10657 posts Report Reply

  • David Cauchi,

    You're obviously more hooked into the arts scene that I, but could you point to any artist who doesn't want their work seen and discussed?

    I am of course only speaking for myself, but I put my work on the net because I want it to be seen by people who might get something out of it. I don't care about it being discussed.

    In fact, I'd rather it weren't discussed or seen in certain contexts. I've turned down shows for this very reason, just as I'd refuse permission for certain people to reproduce my work.

    The idea that any publicity is good publicity is bollocks.

    Wellington • Since Jul 2007 • 121 posts Report Reply

  • rodgerd,

    You're obviously more hooked into the arts scene that I, but could you point to any artist who doesn't want their work seen and discussed?

    I'm not much of an artist (I've sold a few prints and given permission for photos to be used ina Metropolitan Police presentation and a book on surfing in South Africa, of all things), but I can think of all sorts of circumstances under which I would be more than a little pissed off if my art popped up somewhere. Other people implicitly or explicitly claiming credit for it, for starters. Being used by politicians I don't like. Or, for that matter, being used by someone who can't be arsed asking.

    The whole "I'm giving you free publicity" is mostly self-serving horseshit.

    Wellington • Since Nov 2006 • 512 posts Report Reply

  • Tze Ming Mok,

    There are, it should be noted girls'-own stories amongst the Maoriland works too

    Actually, Bernard and Jack's 'Adventures with the Maoris' was written by a chick. A worthy predecessor to Enid Blyton.

    SarfBank, Lunnin' • Since Nov 2006 • 154 posts Report Reply

  • tussock,

    Ah, copyright. One would hope people around here have heard of the concept of just doing away with it. Patents too.

    Other than to say you're not allowed to misrepresent yourself (by claiming something as yours that isn't) for commercial gain, as always.

    Leave us with trademarks, which still seem to improve society.

    Since Nov 2006 • 611 posts Report Reply

  • Craig Ranapia,

    The idea that any publicity is good publicity is bollocks.

    Well, yes, David and rodgerd but that wasn't really my point. I've been doing radio pieces for the last nine months, and while the money is nice, it's rather nice that they're heard by someone. Whether successfully or not is up to others to judge, but I'm trying to communicate to an audience, just as I don't think McCahon's ultimate aim was to have his work gathering dust in a climate-controlled storeroom in the depths of Te Papa.

    Don't see where I gave the impression that I was in any way dismissive of actual intellectual property rights - or the idea that artists, musicians and writers should be properly compensated for use of said intellectual property.

    North Shore, Auckland • Since Nov 2006 • 12370 posts Report Reply

  • Jane Treadwell,

    Which brings me to: My Hobbyhorse: I would dearly love to see a modest contestable fund to which individuals could apply to have a work digitised by the archive that holds it.

    Archives and libraries spend forever debating what to digitise. No one seems to grasp the fact that not every decision has to be top-down, and that part of what is digitised (and, ideally, made freely available thereafter) should be things that members of the public have a use for.

    Forgive my ignorance, but isn't this what the govt's digital strategy all about? Hasn't $24 Mln been set aside for digitising and isn't the National Library meant to be driving this?

    I agree, why can't individuals or groups have access to some of these funds to apply to an entity for digitisation project funding a la the NZ on Air funding for TV programmes.

    Singapore • Since Nov 2007 • 9 posts Report Reply

  • Gabor Toth,

    Forgive my ignorance, but isn't this what the govt's digital strategy all about? Hasn't $24 Mln been set aside for digitising and isn't the National Library meant to be driving this?

    Yup - and we should be hearing more about this next week at the National Digital Forum in Wellington - brilliantly timed to clash with the Digital Future Summit being held in Auckland at the same time...

    Wellington • Since Dec 2006 • 137 posts Report Reply

  • Hamish Keith,

    I hope I didn't give the impression that it was okay to use an artist's work wihout asking permission and without giving the artist some idea of the context. Certainly where the use of the work is not primarily for the sake of the work, its context and its author - book covers are one good example - fees should and must be paid. There was an appalling example recently of Hallensteins using a John Radford sculpture on a Tshirt without pay or permission and getting away with it on a legal technicality. One rule of The Big Picture series was that any work used had to be shown in full and then in detail - no clipping no cropping and no photo shopping - and pretty much that is how it is. The problem is not artists but arts managers who believe their function as gate-keepers entails keeping the gates firmly shut. And you might think about the inherent clash between money making exhibitions and permanent collections.

    Since Nov 2007 • 3 posts Report Reply

  • Russell Brown,

    I should point out that Matapihi provides a pretty good unified image search across various libraries and archives.

    Some of them present images much better than others. The Auckland City Library has lot of old photographs and maps of the city, and presents them at a scale where you can actually look at them. It's quite fun.

    Auckland • Since Nov 2006 • 22850 posts Report Reply

  • Robyn Gallagher,

    The Auckland City Library has lot of old photographs and maps of the city, and presents them at a scale where you can actually look at them. It's quite fun.

    Hell yeah! I spent hours one night trawling for old photos of Mt Eden, looking for one with my flat in it. Eventually I found one taken from the side of the volcano, showing an empty section at some time in the early 20th century. Brilliant!

    And then I explored downtown Auckland, seeing the empty section where the Civic Theatre was eventually built, and the bustling suburb of Newton before the motorway ripped its heart out.

    Since Nov 2006 • 1946 posts Report Reply

  • Jackie Clark,

    I love photos and maps like that - gives you a real sense of a place's history.

    Mt Eden, Auckland • Since Nov 2006 • 3136 posts Report Reply

  • Jane Treadwell,

    we should be hearing more about this next week at the National Digital Forum in Wellington - brilliantly timed to clash with the Digital Future Summit being held in Auckland at the same time...

    Looking at the programmes of both it would appear that the Auckland event is aimed at the decision makers within business and government whereas the Wellington event seems to be aimed at those working at the coalface.

    I wonder which will have more clout as far as actually making things happen?

    Singapore • Since Nov 2007 • 9 posts Report Reply

  • Craig Ranapia,

    Sorry for thread jacking, but while we're talking about cultural brain death, the Qantas Media Award results were less than encouraging:

    TV3 won the coveted Best News trophy. Campbell Live, 3 News and 60 Minutes each won their categories, and TV3's Duncan Garner was named TV Journalist of the Year...

    Um... I'm still far from impressed with TVNZ's news and current affairs but IMNSHO there have been way too many occasions where TVNZ got the basics right while Three was tabloid-ing out to justify this result. And I don't think I'm the only PA reader who is wondering WTF is going on with Campbell Live?

    North Shore, Auckland • Since Nov 2006 • 12370 posts Report Reply

  • vindare,

    I believe that it was Noam Chomsky who said, when asked what he thought of the New Zealand Media, that if he had to rely on it solely for news he wouldn't even know what universe he was in.

    Nothing has changed.

    The quality of journalism in New Zealand has gradually slipped down to the loweest common denominator. Robust analysis and information seeking has been replaced with sycophantic pandering to overseas owners and 'egojournalism'.

    A sad indictment of tne western world.

    Wgtn • Since Nov 2007 • 1 posts Report Reply

  • Lucy Telfar Barnard,

    If anyone is interested in sets of prints of some of William Hodges' paintings, United World Colleges New Zealand has a limited run available - "The Monument of Easter Island"; "Landing at Tanna"; "Waterfall in Dusky Bay"; and "A View of Otaheiti (with Resolution and Adventure at anchor in Matavai Bay)". Cost? Bah, can't remember, but if anyone is interested in them, they should drop a line to info@nz.uwc.org. All proceeds go to United World Colleges New Zealand, which administers scholarships to New Zealand students to attend UWCs (and on that, if you know any over-achieving 16-18 year olds who want to make the world a better place and would like to go to an international school overseas for two years, send 'em our way - email selection.nz@nc.uwc.net for this year's application forms. We are still accepting applications, regardless of what the website says.)

    Wellington • Since Nov 2006 • 585 posts Report Reply

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