I admit the last few posts I have traversed through desipundit regarding various media publications plagiarizing content and even blog plagiarizing prompted me to write this piece. I really wonder if people are as serious about plagiarizing as they seem to be – plagiarizing, getting inspired, lifting off – whatever you call it, but think about this:
- Anu Malik has lifted innumerable tunes for his movies; so what did you do? Stop listening to his music altogether? Did you mail him and ask him to stop getting inspired? Because the music was plagiarized, did it stop you from buying the CD of Murder because you loved the song “Kaho Na Kaho†?
- Most Bollywood movies are inspired by Hollywood. So if Munnabhai M.B.B.S was inspired Patch Adams, would it make Munnabhai a less enjoyable or a less better film? Once you discovered it was inspired, did you decide not to watch it at all? Did you Blog about it?
- You know all too well that you most Tommy Hilfigers you get in India are fake, didn’t you? Did it stop you from buying them? Did you mail the maker or the textile company about shamelessly copying Tommy’s designs?
- Most drugs and medicines in India are more or less variants of the drugs made after considerable research in United States – and that is why India is now having newer laws on drugs and medicines. So, what do you call Crocin or Anacin? An “inspired†drug? Will you stop having it if you are sick?
- Did you hear that Chinese versions of Energizer batteries work just as well and sell for three times cheaper. You wouldn’t buy it would you?
The point is this: Plagiarizing is frankly not that big an issue as it is made out to be through Blog journalism; one just needs to think a little bit beyond the obvious and see that originality as a concept itself is very rare; everything else is more or less plagiarized of one thing.
People mailing magazines like TOI or Cosmopolitan about plagiarizing frankly don’t see the point – what’s the big deal?! People complaining that Hindu’s reviews are plagiarized from NY Times – again, what’s the big deal about it anyways?! There are thousands of things that have been plagiarized right before your eyes, days in and out, and you didn’t do anything about it, but when it comes to media, you want it to be clean and dandy. And I think – why? Why can’t the media too plagiarize as they like?
If you want to expose something in the name of Blog Journalism, especially something like plagiarism, then stop, wait, look around you and think of everything that is around you and start by mentioning whatever is plagiarized. And yes, don’t just stop there:
If you think TOI and Cosmopolitan is plagiarizing content; don’t go and BUY TOI to find more such instance so that you can put it up on your blog. Instead don’t buy them.
If you think Gautam plagiarizes reviews on Hindu – stop reading his reviews; don’t instead go and buy Hindu – then read his reviews online and NYT and then exclaim with joy on our blog about how another 100 reviews of his are copied. That’s mere sensationalism and not Blog journalism.
Or simply – just chill; if you don’t like something – whether plagiarized or not – don’t waste your time on it. Its that simple.