Creativity

“Disney Tolerates a Rap Parody of Its Critters. But Why?” by Brooks Barnes shows a clear depiction of how new media can foster creativity. This article focuses on how Disney has continuously let YouTube users do mash ups of editing snippets of animated movies and TV shows. Using Disney property without authorization is clear and obvious stealing that will inevitably lead to any particular video to be deleted by YouTube. However, it seems that parodies and internet mash ups are tolerated by Disney/Nickelodeon as long as its purpose is more towards entertainment that is more creative and expressive of two different ideas into one. Pirating, however, is just plain stealing therefore it is not approved by Disney. However, that same use of content when used in a rap song with Winnie the Pooh or SpongeBob SquarePants can be used for comedic purposes that attracts viewers for the sole purpose of creating laughter rather than invading these private companies content to profit individually. I think it’s quite easy to tell the difference between both ends of the spectrum when Disney reviews these contents. For example, using Winnie the Pooh content for the purpose of showing an episode or scene from that show would be infringement that will get deleted right away. On the other hand, a rap song called “Crank Dat” using Winnie the Pooh visuals leads to the creatively of combining Disney’s property as well as the individuals level of creativeness leads to a more tolerable and enjoyable video for both parties to display to the rest of the world.