This article was downloaded by: [Colorado College]On: 13 November 2014, At: 17:24Publisher: RoutledgeInforma Ltd Registered in England and Wales Registered Number: 1072954Registered office: Mortimer House, 37-41 Mortimer Street, London W1T 3JH,UK

Journal of Media EconomicsPublication details, including instructions forauthors and subscription information:http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/hmec20

Book review of CopyrightingCulture: The Political Economyof Intellectual PropertySteven R. McClungPublished online: 17 Nov 2009.

To cite this article: Steven R. McClung (1997) Book review of Copyrighting Culture:The Political Economy of Intellectual Property, Journal of Media Economics, 10:4,79-80, DOI: 10.1207/s15327736me1004_6

To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1207/s15327736me1004_6

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THE JOURNAL OF MEDIA ECONOMICS, I0(4j, 79-80 Copyright O 1997, Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Inc.

Ronald V. Bettig. Copyrighting Culture: The Political Economy of Intellectual Property. Boulder, CO: Westview Press, 1996,276 pp. ISBN 0-8133-3304-0.

Steven R. McClung University of Tennessee, Knoxville

It's a classic case of the rich getting richer; in this case Bettig takes a look at how people and corporations try to control and maximize media profits by the use of copyright. This is a well-researched, analyzed, and argued book that takes a critical look at our capitalist system and the hegemony inherent in media, particularly the film industry. Bettig begins his examination with an overview of the "Political Economy of Intellectual Property," which Bettig suggests is "how the logic of capital has resulted in the concentration of ownership and control of the cornrnuni- cations system in the hands of the richest members of the capitalist class" (p. 1).

Moving quickly to "Critical Views on the History and Philosophy of Copyright," Bettig first looks for the roots of intellectual property rights in ancient and medieval times, and how copyright emerged as a way to control those rights. This section provides the reader with a thorough overview of the origins of copyright and intellectual property. This includes a detailed look at the key people involved in the evolution of copyright, such as John Locke, who postulated a theory of "an intellectual property right in author" (p. 19).

After establishing a strong historical and theoretical foundation, Bettig takes the reader on a very detailed, comprehensive look at the cultural and structural patterns that have shaped the evolution of copyright. From that point he details the economic distribution of media copyright and intellectual property profits in contemporary corporate America. Bettig does a thorough job of examining every aspect of the d8zvelopment of copyright including the key players in media industry. Also under scrutiny is the hegemonistic, or what some Southerners would term as "good old boy," political system. Wrapping up the third chapter Bettig takes a startling look al: the economic potential for someone who is allowed to be part of media corporate A.merica, and how that system is protected by the players.

Bettig also provides well-written analysis of copyright from the legal perspec- tive. He examines case law leading up to the critical Sony Betamax case, which is examined in depth. All sides are covered in this chapter from the Judge who presided over the case to the individual home taper, William Griffiths, who was caught in a legal crossfire of media giants.

The book makes a very usable text for graduate level media economic or even media law courses, especially those that utilize the critical perspective. The book

Requests for reprints should be sent to Steven McClung, Department of Broadcasting, College of Communications, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN 37996.

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80 McCLUNG

is very readable, and does a good job of documenting and developing copyright and related issues not only from a historical perspective, but from a strong political and economic theoretical foundation as well. These strengths make the book a strong contender for the graduate-level classroom.

The one caveat of the book is that it is focused primarily on the film industry while only briefly mentioning the burgeoning computer software industry, as well as the music industry-two other industries facing critical copyright issues and proposed changes in copyright law. This by no means detracts from the book's importance, or the sound arguments made, but suggests interesting directions for further analysis. In fact, many of the book's arguments could be extended to those other areas as well. If this were a film, I would anxiously be awaiting the sequel, Copyrighting Culture 11: The Computer SofhYare Story.

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