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Would it be against the law to type the text from newspaper obits and post them on the web for personal use?

i subscribe to a few genealogy mailing lists and i've noticed that sometimes people just type the name of the deceased and the newspaper article the obit is located in...why? i am asking because i want to type up some obits that i have at home and post them to the internet so that i can share info with other researchers... thanks in advance!

Public Comments

1. I would post the paper just to be safe. techinally all printed information is copyright owned by the writer.
2. You can do this if you give credit to your sources.
3. It won't be illegal to type the text and then site your source, but i think it would be if you don't say where you got the information from.
4. What you're suggesting is done on many sites. I think it's a matter of how much time the person has to spend, that makes some of them just put the basic information there...they assume if you want it you can then go to the original source for the rest.
5. Obituaries generally belong to the newspaper and are copyrighted. However, a lot of times if you contact the newspaper and tell them you wish to do it as a genealogical service they will grant permission to be posted elsewhere. If you have them as part of the information in your personal uploaded family tree and they are in your family then it is OK as it is on your personal site and not for mass public consumption.
6. You can include the paper's name but I would do it to help other researchers know where you found your information. The paper doesn't write the obits, mostly its the family. The paper edits them. So it's not plagiarizing.
7. Remember the importance of documentation when it comes to Genealogical research. That said even with or without the legal issue documenting the source, time, date, page, as much information about the source as possible is always far more legit and accepted than just posting the info without any source information. Technically against the law, maybe, but it's so minor that it wouldn't ever be enforced. You would be looked down upon though for failure to fully document your sources and source information from other researchers who might depend upon your information for their own research.
8. Paid obituaries are considered advertising and are exempt from copyright laws. News reports of a person's death are different. If someone dies in an auto accident and the newspaper reports it in the news section and the family pays for an obituary, then you can reprint the obituary but can't reprint the news story without permission of the paper.
9. It's ok so long as you cite your source. Think of it from the writer's point of view: How would feel if you worked very hard to put together a written piece, had it published and no one acknowledged your work and on top of that everyone who wanted to used it as their own? That's why it's so important to cite sources, it gives credit where credit is due. If you want to be exact, consult http://www.bedfordstmartins.com/online/citex.html to make sure you've given all the information you need.