It has been suggested that Old Media writers are "stealing" content and op-ed ideas from bloggers. Check out this column from the Orlando Sentinel that went live on 6/2/02, and then take a look at my post on this very issue which went live on 5/31/02. Coincidence? Let me know what you think.
More on this: I agree with InstaPundit that this doesn't rise to the level of actual plagiarism. It *does* however violate basic, voluntary journalistic ethics. If I read a published piece of writing (blogs are publications) that prompts me to comment on it in a public forum for which I am paid for my words, I should credit the source of the idea. Since I actually make my living by writing, this matters to me.
In the sphere of freelance writing, it is considered a MAJOR ethical no-no for a publication to lift a story idea from a query sent in by a freelancer and then assign it to a staff writer. Same goes for publishing. Reputable publishing houses don't read through book proposals submitted by hopeful aspiring authors and then surreptitiously lift the book ideas and package the books in-house.
Update: Kathleen Parker, the columnist in question, tells
More on this: I agree with InstaPundit that this doesn't rise to the level of actual plagiarism. It *does* however violate basic, voluntary journalistic ethics. If I read a published piece of writing (blogs are publications) that prompts me to comment on it in a public forum for which I am paid for my words, I should credit the source of the idea. Since I actually make my living by writing, this matters to me.
In the sphere of freelance writing, it is considered a MAJOR ethical no-no for a publication to lift a story idea from a query sent in by a freelancer and then assign it to a staff writer. Same goes for publishing. Reputable publishing houses don't read through book proposals submitted by hopeful aspiring authors and then surreptitiously lift the book ideas and package the books in-house.
Update: Kathleen Parker, the columnist in question, tells