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Introduction to Writing Ethically

Introduction to Writing Ethically

What you’ll learn to do: Discuss issues of plagiarism, copyright and fair use

Developing a business report or other communication comes with certain responsibilities, namely proper citation of other people’s work. There are three common concepts that we will review here; all three have to do with the right author or creator getting credit for his or her efforts:

  1. Plagiarism
  2. Copyright
  3. Fair Use

Plagiarism is using someone’s ideas or materials without properly citing their authority. The following eHow Education video discusses the problem:

Lastly, Fair Use is a related concept that details how one may use copyrighted or other protected material without citation. There are four conditions, and all four must be met in order to adhere to Fair Use rules:[1]

  1. the purpose and character of the use, including whether such use is of a commercial nature or is for nonprofit educational purposes
  2. the nature of the copyrighted work
  3. the amount and substantiality of the portion used in relation to the copyrighted work as a whole
  4. the effect of the use upon the potential market for or value of the copyrighted work

In the following pages, we will go into each in greater detail.

 


  1. Larson, Aaron. "Fair Use Doctrine and Copyright Law". ExpertLaw.com.11 February 2018 Web. 16 April 2018.