Blogger Basics: Getting Copyright

The internet is a big, big place full of content, products, photos, and more. Because we’re so used to pulling content and images from the internet for personal use, when we start blogging it may feel like we can do the same thing. If you’re new to blogging, you may not realize that there are some rules of conduct and etiquette that websites follow to keep out of the way of any copyright laws ( yes, they exist on the internet too).

Image Source

 Once you start blogging, there is community of share and share alike. If you find content on the internet that you want to share with your readers, the safest way to do so is to make sure you credit the site that you pulled the image from. Just like plagiarism in school, publishing content that is not your own is a big no-no. Always be sure to ask for permission to post something that you did not create, or credit the blog that it came from. Most bloggers don’t appreciate their work being republished in full so if you want to showcase someone else’s work, a simple photo and a link will do.

Keep in mind the golden rule: Don’t do anything to someone that you wouldn’t want done to you.

For a great breakdown of some of the ethics of blogging check out this article Bigger, Better, Bolder: A Quick Guide to Copyright for Bloggers.