Cathay Smith on Weaponizing Copyright

In this episode, Cathay Y. N. Smith, Associate Professor of Law at the University of Montana Blewett School of Law, discusses her new article "Weaponizing Copyright." Smith begins by explaining that "weaponizing" copyright is using it for non-copyright ends. In theory, copyright is supposed to be about ensuring that copyright owners reap the economic value of the works they own. But sometimes, copyright owners use their copyright to accomplish non-economic goals. Often, those goals are laudable, like punishing racist speech or removing revenge porn from the internet. But they can also be bad, especially when they involve the suppression of critical speech. Smith reflects on that tension and how it might be resolved, through the lens of many different examples. Smith is on Twitter at @CathaySmith.

This episode was hosted by Brian L. Frye, Spears-Gilbert Professor of Law at the University of Kentucky College of Law. Frye is on Twitter at @brianlfrye.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.