User:The JPS/fair use rationale

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This is an essay. It is not a policy or guideline, it simply reflects some opinions of its authors. Please update the page as needed, or discuss it on the talk page.

This is an unofficial guide to an official policy. It should be kept as simple as possible.

A fair use rationale is a brief summary on an image description page explaining why a fair use image can be used in each article. A more detailed explaination is here.

1 Why?
2 How?
3 Importance of points
4 Examples
5 Don't forget: the source
6 See also

[edit] Why?

Fair use is more complicated than some users think. Fair use is not the same as free use. We need to prove to copyright holders (in the case of potential, expensive lawsuits) that we have made a genuine effort to apply fair use correctly.

Some users have uploaded images with the simple reason "per fair use policy." This is unacceptable.

[edit] How?

Use the bullet point information in the image tag template for the things you should cover:

Generally, the following is acceptable:

Fair use claimed for the [[xx]] article because:

no free alternative available or could be obtained.
the source text [name of TV show, etc.] is discussed in the article.
does not detract from the value of the text, or the copyright holder's ability to make further profit from it.
Because the image is provided at a low resolution inappropriate for re-printing, its usage on Wikipedia does not pose a problem of aiding media piracy.
This is only one frame out of the thousands that constitute the entire text.

More points may be needed depending on the subject and image.

The image description page should have a rationale for each article the image is included.

Remember to think about each criteria for each image. Do not copy and paste identical rationales without considering that it is genuine fair use.

[edit] Importance of points

All three of the above points are vital for fair use.

no free alternative: if a Wikipedian can easily and legally photograph the subject then it will not be fair use. Actors can be photographed at public appearances, so this is more difficult: fair use images are more acceptable here, but we should strive to replace it with a free alternative.
- Photographs of the Tyne Bridge or Sydney Harbour Bridge would not be fair use because any Wikipedian living near those places can easily photograph it themselves.
the source text should be discussed in the article: It is unacceptable to use an image from a show/magazine (etc.) without discussing that same text in the article.
- Magazine covers should be used to illustrate the magazine, not who or what is on its cover.
value: this is particularly relevant for album covers, which should be of low resolution to make reproduction for bootlegs difficult.