ATTN JMS: Article in MIT Technology Review with you

[B5JMS Poster]

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From: SurlyBitch <surlybitch at my-deja.com>
Date: 1 May 2000 20:55:01 -0600
Lines: 58

Hi, JMS and all!

Sorry if this might be a little long. Two questions, one short, the
other...well, not really short, but both couched in the same event.

Reading through the March/April 2000 MIT Technology Review magazine
there is a piece titled "Digital Land Grab" by Henry Jenkins
(apparently an instructor there). He writes about how companies are
desperately moving into new territories to establish trademarks. Now
that they appear to have run out of original ideas, they are raiding
historical culture.

He starts off the piece with a hypothetical question about how would
we, as a culture, remember such universally known works such as "Alice
in Wonderland" if, at the beginning of the 20th century, trademark
infringements were so zealously pursued as they are today?

How would we remember such things as "The Red Queen(tm) or The Cheshire
Cat(tm)" all rights reserved McDisneyWarnerCorp (my addition) for
example? He notes that much of the fame "Alice" gained was in large
part due to the parodies, "fan fiction", and social critiques based on
the original that increased word or mouth of the Carroll's original.

To the part in which he spoke of you, I can only hope that you were
putting on your sarcasm cap and channeling for the TimeWarner
execs: "J. Michael Straczynski, executive producer of the cult
television series 'Babylon 5,' was speaking to the students in my
science fiction class at MIT. One student asked him what he thought
about 'fans,' and after a pause, he replied, 'You mean, copyright
infringers.' The remark was met with nervous laughter and mutual
misunderstanding." That's all he wrote concerning the comment.

I always was under the impression that you didn't mind the fans or
their sites. (Of course I realize that TimeWarner owns it all, but
attributing this comment to you caught my eye). Might this just be an
incorrect characterization of the session you led? I can hope that the
remark was taken out of context, but you can straighten that out for us
if you see need fit to.

Dr Jenkins goes further to warn that companies are now moving into
popular and historical culture to grab trademarks. Names such as Aladdin
(tm), Anastasia(tm), Hercules(tm) and more are all part of our common
mythology and culture, but corporations are moving to lock them into
their own pantheons of products and preclude their use elsewhere.

Do you see these things happening there in the heart of the film/TV
industry? Dr Jenkins IS a continent away, so he could be just a little
off about it. However, I find the magazine as a whole to be well
balanced and fairly written, so it made me think enough to ask.

Thanks for your time, work, and most of all, B5.
--
D. Smoot aka "SurlyBitch"


Sent via Deja.com http://www.deja.com/
Before you buy.


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From: jmsatb5 at aol.com (Jms at B5)
Date: 2 May 2000 00:22:44 -0600
Lines: 33

>To the part in which he spoke of you, I can only hope that you were
>putting on your sarcasm cap and channeling for the TimeWarner
>execs: "J. Michael Straczynski, executive producer of the cult
>television series 'Babylon 5,' was speaking to the students in my
>science fiction class at MIT. One student asked him what he thought
>about 'fans,' and after a pause, he replied, 'You mean, copyright
>infringers.' 

>The remark was met with nervous laughter and mutual
>misunderstanding." That's all he wrote concerning the comment.

>I always was under the impression that you didn't mind the fans or
>their sites. (Of course I realize that TimeWarner owns it all, but
>attributing this comment to you caught my eye). Might this just be an
>incorrect characterization of the session you led?

I did not say "fans."  I said "fan fiction."  I sent a very pointedly written
note to the site correcting this some time ago; I think you will find this in
the feedback section.  

 jms

(jmsatb5 at aol.com)
B5 Official Fan Club at:
http://www.thestation.com
(all message content (c) 2000 by
synthetic worlds, ltd., permission
to reprint specifically denied to
SFX Magazine)




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