(no subject)

let's talk about this post

In-Progress Pokemon is a tumblr blog that draws "in-between" stages of what pokemon evolution would look like if it was a gradual rather than instantaneous process. Some person on youtube makes a video about this, talking about their (generally positive) opinion of various in-progress lines, and of course putting the pictures created by IPP right there in the video so, y'know, people watching can know what they're talking about.

Someone else on tumblr watches the video, and then tags IPP saying "i hope you gave permission for this". IPP responds they hadn't, but it's all good because the youtuber did credit them and link to their blog.

Should you ask for people's permission before you make a video about them? no. obviously.

Should you ask for people's permission before you use their creative work in a video talking about it? legally, it depends on a bunch of stuff (fair use always does) but you at least have a decent argument that you don't have to; criticism and commentary are paradigmatic examples of transformative uses. morally... well people probably draw the line in different places? but i think this case was entirely fine.

as a general rule, people on the internet are a lot more generous about considering it permissible to use other people's intellectual property than the law is (and often loudly criticise copyright law as unfairly restrictive). but you see cases like above every once in a while.

you can consider this one person just an exception to the general rule, ofc. but it fits into this broader pattern where people care a lot more about intellectual property when it's happening to [them/their friends/a random artist they formed a parasocial relationship with] and i start to think that maybe the internet's position isn't "intellectual property is fake" so much as "intellectual property violations are Real Harm but i don't give a shit about the people they usually happen to"