The U.S. Constitution empowers Congress to enact copyright law. Copyright applies to much more than traditional writings-it protects artwork, sculpture, sound recordings, videotapes, motion pictures, maps, graphs, computer programs, databases, and a host of other original creations. You need to consider the copyright implications of duplicating any of these materials in your dissertation. Copyright law is not quite so simple. If copyright were merely a set of rights belonging exclusively to authors, we would have to seek permission for every use.
Fair use is both a privilege and source of confusion.
These examples are relatively easy to grasp, but difficult questions surround more complex cases-the longer quotations, or the uses of distinctive materials, such as standardized survey instruments, questionnaires, videotapes, or computer software. Many uses require a fresh analysis, and they may never produce easy or absolute answers. The fair use of materials in scholarly works is rarely the subject of judicial decisions-the litigation costs and attorney fees are prohibitive. Yet courts are not insensitive to academic needs, and the fair-use statute acknowledges the importance of educational uses. Some rulings have recognized that the growth of scholarship depends on using previous works, particularly in writing biographies or history.