Keeping It Real, Part 1: Plagiarism and Copyright Infringement

By Eileen Hargraves, with CB, AM, and KJ

Word count: 742

“Keep it real, folks. Just keep it real.” —Abraham Lincoln

Let’s get this out of the way right now: very few people actually enjoy talking about plagiarism,
attributions (for semi-open or open copyright materials), and citations (for closed or restricted
copyright materials). However, learning about these things now can save you from a lot of pain later.
This article covers plagiarism and is the first of three guides dedicated to keeping you out of the
firing line when it comes to the dangers inherent in content creation.

So what exactly is plagiarism? According to Merriam-Webster, you plagiarize when you “steal and
pass off (the ideas or words of another) as one’s own” (“Plagiarize,” n.d.). This definition seems
appropriately serious.

There are different levels of plagiarism, all of which should be avoided:

 Intentionally duplicating or taking another person’s original creative ideas, text, or content
structure without providing proper attributions or citations (e.g., copying and pasting text,
switching out similar words in a sentence, or paraphrasing too closely).
 Unintentionally copying the same content from another person or source without realizing
it (i.e., subconscious or accidental plagiarism).
 Using content you created for another university or publisher without permission from all
involved stakeholders (i.e., self-plagiarizing).
The Yale Center for Teaching and Learning is an excellent resource for learning more about the
types of plagiarism.
A related topic is copyright infringement. You might provide a great citation or attribution
(avoiding plagiarism) but still violate copyright law. Copyright law could take up an entire series of
articles by itself, but as long as we’re here, let's talk about a few more things to avoid:

 Using copyrighted content without permission from and (if required) appropriate
compensation to the copyright holder (e.g., articles, code, videos, artwork, and
photographs). Our university pays for licenses to use journals and other learning resources
to avoid this kind of copyright infringement. (Citations and attributions are still required for
those, of course.)
 Using the “fair use” argument inappropriately. Fair use may, in some cases, be considered an
exception to using content without a license or other explicit permission from the copyright
holder, but keep in mind that determining fair use involves a delicate analysis. You should
check with the university's legal team before relying on that argument.
 Not complying with a website’s terms of use when using its content (e.g., using content that
is limited to personal use only). Be careful, as some websites may require payment from
WGU for linking to their website or for the use of even small quotations. For this reason, a
careful review of the website’s terms of use is crucial.
 Not following the copyright license requirements for open or semi-open content (e.g.,
making unauthorized changes to an open educational resource, or OER, text when the
license says “no derivatives”).
There are some resources that are fair game, however:

 Public domain and CC0 material. These materials are not protected by copyright, and you
don’t need permission to use them. Although you can legally use content in the public
domain without providing a citation, it is almost always recommended to do so. But be
careful! Central Michigan University shares these wise words about public domain: “As a
rule of thumb, you should consider information on the Internet to be protected by copyright
law and treat it accordingly. Publicly accessible and public domain are not the same thing”
(Central Michigan University, n.d.).
 Original content created by you or your team for the university. This is preferred, whenever
possible.
 Copyrighted material with the permission of the copyright holder, giving proper attributions
or citations. (Permission should be documented in writing, such as in an email from the
copyright holder.)
 Well-known facts.

You may be saying to yourself that you’d never intentionally steal another person’s work, but when
you’re crunched for time or are balancing a lot of projects, it’s easy to fall into the trap of content
grabbing. At this university, we hold ourselves and our students to a high standard of ownership
and professionalism. As we continue to grow, we want to make sure we are representing ourselves
well to the world. Learning how to use citations and attributions accurately (and quotation marks
and footnotes effectively) will help us maintain that standard.

Stay tuned for the next exciting installment in this series, attributions, in which you will find more
specific examples and guidance about how to approach using an OER.

References

Central Michigan University (n.d.). FAQs. Retrieved from

https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/research_and_citation/apa_style/apa_formatting_and_style_guide/ref
erence_list_electronic_sources.html.

"Citation vs. Attribution" by Lauri Aesoph is licensed under CC BY 4.0

Plagiarize (n.d.). In Merriam-Webster’s online dictionary. Retrieved from https://www.merriam-

webster.com/dictionary/plagiarize