In July, as part of my โClimate Denial Crock of the Weekโ video series, I published a piece that criticized and parodied the work of well known climate denier Anthony Watts, and his โSurfaceStations.orgโย project.
On July 26, Watts filed what I regard as an improper โDMCAโ claim against the video, and had it removed fromย YouTube.
The DMCA, (Digital Millenium Copyright Act), was originally intended to protect copyright owners from internet abuse, but has been occasionally used improperly, notoriously by authoritarian religious groups and cults, in order to restrain criticism and free speech on theย internet.
After some investigation of related cases and obtaining additional opinions as to relevant copyright law, Iย confirmed my original belief that my videos in no way violate copyright law, especially in light of the principles of critical review, parody, and transformational use ofย material.
In accordance with established YouTube guidelines, I filed a โcounternoticeโ, affirming, โunder penalty of perjury, that I have a good faith belief that the materialย was removed or disabled as a result of a mistake or misidentification of the material to be removed orย disabled.โ
As of today, I have received the following confirmation from YouTube:
โ In accordance with the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, weโve completed processing
your counter-notification regarding yourย video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dcxVwEfq4bM
This content has been restored and your account will not beย penalized.โ
I wish to extend my sincerest gratitude to YouTube, to all those who advised and supported me in this effort, and most especially, to Anthony Watts and SurfaceStation.org, for providing invaluable exposure to my video series, and greatly increasing my traffic andย visibility.
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