Jessica Reyman. The Rhetoric of Intellectual Property: Copyright Law and the Regulation of Digital Culture. Routledge, New York (2010) 188 pp.

摘要

In the fall of 2003,1 was at the University of Minnesota as a graduate student teaching a section of Rhetoric 1101. During that semester, one student wanted to write a research paper about downloading music (whether illegally or legally, she didn't specify). Given that intellectual property and copyright were among my research interests, I approved the topic but stressed to her that whatever her position on the matter, she would have to address opposing views and that both dominant sides of the debate (which is admittedly more complex than two sides) would have to be represented in her paper. She agreed, but later came to me and said that although she'd tried to find sources arguing in favor of downloading music, she hadn't been able to find any. I had to explain to her that search terms determined, to a great extent, what she would find, and that if she searched for piracy, she would find mostly sources arguing against downloading music. To find opposing or divergent views, I suggested, she would have to search for file sharing. The student was able to locate sources and then write the paper without difficulty.