Content Theft.
After doing the Google search that resulted in this post (the one about the increasingly widespread use of the term “farookin’), I was looking over the search results in more detail for shits and giggles. Not surprisingly, I found many of my own entries. However, I came across one of my entries, but the problem was it was not posted on my blog.
WTF?
I clicked on over to the site in question, and, sure enough, my December 9, 2005 post about Caviar appeared on the site in question in a December 18, 2005 post. As you can see from the screenshot, it was lifted word for word. I frankly was surprised at how angry it made me. I don’t claim to be Hemmingway, but if I write it, it’s mine.
I immediately fired off a comment in which I pointed out the blogger’s plagiarism and demanded that the post be removed.*** I also left a similar note on one of those message type boards that the site had in the left sidebar.
I looked at numerous other entries, and some of them seemed familiar to me. It turns out that the blogger in question has also lifted a considerable amount of content from my Helen Blogmeet buddy, Evil White Guy. I shot him an e-mail to alert him to the problem.
He responded today indicating that he had checked the site, verified that a good deal of his content had been lifted and that the blogger in question was also hotlinking his images. He noted that he anticipated taking action with the blogger’s hosting service.
As of this writing, the offending posts are still up (The blogger also lifted my “Happy New Year” post, which esstially consisted of one sentence), but the “Message Board†has been removed, comments have been disabled, and there appears to be no way to send the blogger an e-mail.
For the present, I would like to assume that the blogger in question (from Singapore) is simply not aware of the etiquette and the law that deal with plagiarism – not to mention the tackiness of it all. However, my comment, my note in the now-removed “Message Board†(both of which specifically identified the plagiarism), the disabling of her comments, and her failure to remove the offending material suggest otherwise.
Developing.
*** I was so angry when I wrote the comment that I misspelled the word “plagiarism,†which proves the rule that one should never write things one cannot change when one is very angry.
After the plagiarism and the cowardly behaviour, what ticks me off is that the thieving cow claims to be from Texas.
I only hope she’s a blue-state transplant.
Comment by aelfheld — January 7, 2006 @ 9:46 pm
I’ve seen this more and more. What these bastards are trying to do is get more eyes on their ads by hijacking your content and google hits.
Usually the idiots take it down as soon as they’re confronted, but this person appears to be persistent.
As much as I get googled, I’m surprised I don’t get this.
Comment by caltechgirl — January 7, 2006 @ 9:48 pm
I checked this out, and amazingly enough, your post is still there, uncredited.
I have no problem with people using my crap, as long as I’m credited and the source material is linked. [I have a Creative Commons license with the appropriate language.] But this…this is just plain farookin’ wrong.
[Farookin’ (c) 2005 Jim of PRS]
For what it’s worth, that site is a royal piece of shit. It’s all internet e-mail pictures, bullshit music videos (one of which plays as soon as you load the index page), and there’s not a scrap of original writing on it. Probably just some Singaporean teenage girl who has no freakin’ clue. No traffic to speak of, except what your link here will bring in.
But it’s still Your Stuff, dammit.
Comment by Elisson — January 7, 2006 @ 10:21 pm
Change the image. Insert text to indicate the image and the blog entry were stolen and used without your permission.
Or do like some sites do, and insert a GRAPHIC graphic.
Comment by Bob — January 7, 2006 @ 11:00 pm
… I like Bob’s idea…
Comment by Eric — January 8, 2006 @ 8:40 am
Like Ellison, I don’t have a problem with people using my stuff as long as they give me credit. It’s common courtesy; even if you use something as small as a sentence verbatim, you should credit the author. I give credit when I paraphrase as well, and when I don’t know the origin of the data, I ask readers to send me information about the the source if they know it.
But I think a lot of people don’t care anymore. They don’t value what it takes for writers/artists to develop original material. If you look up the statistics on cheating in American schools and plagiarism, you’ll find they’re both on the increase. The schools used to expel students or give long suspensions for cheating and plagiarism. Today, many schools give only a slap on the wrist, I think.
This problem will only get worse. It’s nearly impossible to keep up with people swiping content on the Net and not crediting the author with name and link. Ultimately, you just have to keep your eyes open and pitch a fit when and if someone figures out how to earn money off what you’ve written without your permission. Also, consider yourself blessed that you can prove you said it or wrote it first because you posted it to the web before anyone else did. But if anyone’s figured out how to turn a decent buck off my writing, then I want to be paid, doggone it! They’re asking for a big fight then.
As for the culprit being from Texas, just what is the literacy level of the average Texan? Does she understand the content she’s stolen? 😉 I’m teasing here; so, all you people in Texas, please don’t write me.
Comment by Nordette — January 8, 2006 @ 6:51 pm
I went back and checked…not only does this asshole steal content, she (I think it’s a she) hotlinks all her photographs. So it’s not just theft of content, it’s bandwidth theft as well.
Time to pull the Goatse trick. Switch the photo in the hotlink to something horrendously obscene. If nothing else, it’ll teach the asshole not to hotlink other people’s pics.
Comment by Elisson — January 8, 2006 @ 7:39 pm
I’m thinking a pic of a hot throbbing c**k in the farookin’ ferundum would do the trick. I hates a thief.
Comment by Velociman — January 9, 2006 @ 8:13 pm
Replace hotlinked images with Hillary Clinton’s photo. Cruel, but effective.
Comment by zonker — January 10, 2006 @ 1:06 pm
I think that this matter can be dealt with pretty easily. Both blogomonster and their host, godaddy.com, are American companies. I would simply file a complaint with the host and, if that doesn’t work, file a DMCA complaint with GoDaddy.
Instructions for doing both of those things can be found on my site.
If you need help though, just let me know. You can reach me either at the email above or by using my contact form to reach me. I’m always available to help out a fellow Webmaster in need.
I’m very sorry to hear about your plagiarism issue. I hope that you can get it resolved soon.
Comment by Jonathan — January 11, 2006 @ 8:07 pm
I spoke too soon and had to return. I just discovered today that some of my writing has been lifted verbatim and posted to NOT a fellow blogger’s site but to a commercial/”professional” website. No credit was given to me as the author, however. Yes, I have written them, and can’t wait to see if the developer will give me my due credit or delete my content and write his own or swipe someone else’s.
Comment by Nordette — January 12, 2006 @ 1:20 pm
I’m more patient than most when it comes to having my stuff lifted. I always go in with the assumption that it’s an honest mistake, and my first contact is just to say that I’m flattered that they liked my writing and ask them to include the link to my original post.
So far I’ve always gotten a blushing apology and a link.
Comment by Harvey — January 13, 2006 @ 11:16 am
That has happened to me I think, two or three times, where I post something I figured was public domain (because I saw it everywhere) and the author/creator emails me and says “Whafug?” I always fix it within minutes. To do otherwise, deserves a good hacking.
Comment by Bane — January 16, 2006 @ 7:11 pm