Section 110

Reading to kids is one of the best thing we can do for them.  If the law gets in the way of that, there is something wrong with the law!

That said, honoring the rights of authors and illustrators who create stories to charm and educate is one of the best ways we can make sure there is always something new to read. 

And it’s the law.  

The member’s concern is justified; copyright law rewards creativity by empowering rights holders to control how and when their work is duplicated--in this case, “performed”[1].  A reading on “Facebook Live”—no matter how many cute, be-jammied scholars it enriches—could infringe those rights[2]. 

But as the member also suggests, respecting copyright does not need to be the end of the line; there are many ways this type of real-time, remote reading can take place.

Below, please find my “Top 5 Ways for a Teacher to Remotely Read a Bedtime Story to Lots of Kids in Different Places Without Fear of Committing Copyright Infringement.”

1.  When choosing a book to read, select a work in the “public domain”…meaning, the book is no longer protected by copyright.  As of 2019, this means works published before 1924 (in the U.S.) and other select situations.[3]

For example, the “Brothers Grimm” who were writing in the 1800’s, are not suing anymore (nor are their heirs).  Just make sure the publisher hasn’t found a new way to assert the copyright of the copy you read from (a new version, new illustrations and layout, a slightly less sadistic version of the original, etc).

2.  Write your own story.

This one is my favorite.  Who knows?  You might discover you’re the next Eric Carle!

3.  Hold a writing contest amongst the students that includes parental permission to read the entries/winners online. 

This could also bolster interest in the event, since kids could hear their own work read, and see their own pictures online.

4.  Explore making the reading exempt under the TEACH Act (section 110 (2) of the Copyright Act).

The TEACH Act exempts certain digital transmissions of work from the classroom environment.  It has several highly specific requirements, so educators should connect with their institution’s attorney and IT department to see if this option can work for them.  While not the solution for every “good night” reading, with some planning, it could be a way to make online reading sessions a part of a routine curriculum.

And finally…

5.  Explore getting permission from the rights holder!  While not all authors will be in a position to agree, many will say “Yes, of course!” when asked if a teacher can livestream a reading of their book (of course, if you also want to show their book as well as read it, you will need permission from the illustrator, too). 

Reaching out to an author or publisher takes time, but many children’s authors are very accessible.  My high school friend, Grace Lin, is a well-known children’s book author (and recent winner of a Caldecott Honor for “A Big Mooncake for Little Star”).  I reached out to Grace on Facebook to get her take on this issue (and got her permission to share her thoughts). 

For Grace, whose work contains lovely and carefully rendered illustrations, such a request would be about intent and quality.  She said if the reading was more about the not-for-profit reader and audience connecting over her story, and not the video dwelling on the pages (effectively copying them), she would consider giving permission.  On the flip side, Grace felt that serious duplication (with the video dwelling on the pages) could be an unwelcome duplication. 

Like many children’s book authors, Grace is accessible via her website, www.gracelin.com, and I encourage would be night-time-story-readers to reach out to her!

Thank you for this great question.  Copyright is an important law to honor in the educational environment.  But finding ways—lots of ways—to give children an early and deep love of books is an even greater service to the world.  It’s one of the reasons librarians are so important.

At "Ask the Lawyer," we are frequently amazed at the diversity of the copyright questions we get.  When we started the service, we thought we'd often refer people back to answers that had already been covered.

But librarians always find a way to switch things up!

What are the new variables this time?

"Doors" and "images from movies."

We'll start with "images from movies."

Under the Copyright Act, the owner of the copyright controls the right to display still images from movies.[1] So the member is right to flag this as a possible concern.

But we can potentially rest easy on that point, because educators have some special rights under the Copyright Act--if the material was legally obtained, and if the material is used as part of the curriculum--and "displaying" images from motion pictures is one of them. 

Or, as Congress puts it in Section 110(a) the Copyright Act:

[P]erformance or display of [one legally obtained] work by instructors or pupils in the course of face-to-face teaching activities of a nonprofit educational institution, in a classroom or similar place devoted to instruction [is an exception to infringement].[2]

So, under 110, here is the analysis to answer the member's question:

1. Is the decoration part of "teaching activities?"

2. Did the teacher obtain the copy lawfully? 

If the answer to both is "yes," then the answer is: decorate the heck out of that door.

Having said that, I appreciate that the two factors set out above are not always easy to answer.  Frustratingly, there is no one-size-fits-all definition of either "teaching activities" or "lawful copies."  That said, using some grown-up versions of famous characters from my childhood, here are some examples of the "wrong" and the "right" way.

The wrong way to use 110

Teacher Mr. Goofus[3] does a Google image search for "Elsa," captures a bunch of screenshots from "Frozen," prints out color copies.  He puts them on the outside of the classroom door, together with a sign saying "Let it go, only a few weeks until Winter Break!"

The right way to use 110

Teacher Mr. Gallant uses the copy of the DVD owned by the school library to create a screenshot of the scene where Elsa is discovered to have magical powers.  He puts it on the inside of the classroom door, along with a sign saying: "This month we'll be reading the Scarlett Letter and discussing depictions of overcoming social alienation in popular culture."[4]

What do these examples show?  The more integrated with the course work, and the more legitimate the copy, the more the teacher (and the school) can claim protection under 110. (NOTE: Mr. Gallant could claim protection under "Fair Use."[5])

Which brings me back to the other variable: the door.  For a 110(a) analysis, what side of the door the movie picture is on is (potentially) relevant, since if the content is on the outside of the door, it's slightly harder to claim the material is part of "face-to-face teaching."  That said, if the link to an actual lesson plan is clearly perceptible (like in the "Gallant" example), I think it could work.

And there you have it. 

I have noticed this "door decoration" phenomenon when picking my kids up from school.  My poor children[6] never have a moment that is Harry Potter® or Elsa®-free.

But I get it, images from movies are a way to brighten the environment and get kids engaged.  Fortunately for the teachers of this world, if you follow its formula, Section 110(a) makes it okay.  This is good, since after taking a quick look, we could not find a non-paywall source for such images.[7]

But make sure the use is part of the curriculum!  Thanks for a thoughtful question.

[1] See https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/17/106, section (5).

[2] See https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/17/110

[3] Before committing to this example, I checked to see if 1) "Goofus and Gallant" was still "a thing;" and 2) if modern norms of child psychology had decided they were based on any harmful tropes.  Wow, was a fun ten-minute tangent.  As the children's librarians out there already no doubt know, G&G is very much still "a thing."  Further, while a ton of fascinating stuff has been written about their antics (showcased in over a billion issues of "Highlights") they are still alive and illustrating extremes of youthful behavior--having outlived such contemporaries as lead paint, seatbeltless cars, and jarts.  Go, G&G.

[4] This is an appropriate assignment for fourth grade, right?

[5] Which the "Goofus" example would not qualify for.

[6] Am I just jealous?  I tried to remember what was decorating the doors of my elementary school in New Hartford, NY, circa 1982.  I am pretty sure the only decor was the sad remains of the people in "Oregon Trail."  Speaking of harmful tropes…

[7] If you know of one, please alert me at info@stephaniecoleadams.com.

First question
As you say, a college can show a movie they own, without further licensing, so long as: 

• The institution is a not-for-profit
• The performance of the film is in connection with face-to-face teaching activities, in a classroom or similar place of instruction.
• The copy was legitimately acquired

This is a broad exemption, but it absolutely does not apply to non-instructional, non-classroom showing of movies by student clubs.  Such a showing would require express permission via license.

Of course, if a student club has an academic focus (for instance, Spanish Club) and the film is to be part of an academic experience (for instance, watching the movie in Spanish, to enhance learning), in an academic setting (class room, with a qualified academic instructor) one could argue that the required elements are still met. But the educational purpose must be bona fide…no watching “Deadpool” for entertainment and then having a half-hearted, academically disconnected discussion on modern comic book tropes.  And of course under no circumstances should money be charged.

Second question
The second question is very simple: the cover images of most commercial films are subject to copyright.  Because of that, and because there is no exemption allowing them to be duplicated, unless permission is obtained, the college is well-advised not to allow copies to be displayed to promote the event, and especially should not allow that image to be published on the college website. 

Keeping it off the website is critical.  Even smaller rights holders police the internet for images they own, and insurance companies, facing mandatory statutory damages and attorneys’ fees, will quickly settle claims…something that will eventually lead to higher insurance premiums for your institution.

The best way to promote the licensed showing is to either use the approved promotional material that comes with the license, or generate a version that does not infringe on the content of the original (or the film).