CPW Writing Ethics and Copyright 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A freelance writer copies three sentences verbatim from a published article without attribution and includes them in a client deliverable. This is best described as:
- Paraphrasing
- Plagiarism (Correct answer)
- Fair use
- Transformative use
Correct answer: Plagiarism
Copying verbatim text without attribution constitutes plagiarism, regardless of the source being publicly available.
Question 2: Under US copyright law, which element is NOT required for a work to receive copyright protection?
- Originality
- Registration with the Copyright Office (Correct answer)
- Fixation in a tangible medium
- A human author
Correct answer: Registration with the Copyright Office
Copyright protection attaches automatically upon creation and fixation; registration is not required but provides legal benefits.
Question 3: A technical writer is asked by their employer to omit safety warnings from a user manual to save space. The ethical response is to:
- Comply because the employer has final authority
- Omit the warnings but note it in a memo
- Refuse and document the request, citing reader safety obligations (Correct answer)
- Add warnings in a font size too small to read
Correct answer: Refuse and document the request, citing reader safety obligations
Professional writers have an ethical obligation to readers' safety that supersedes client convenience, and documenting the request protects the writer.
Question 4: The doctrine of 'work made for hire' means that:
- The writer retains copyright but grants a license
- The employer or commissioning party owns the copyright (Correct answer)
- The writer and employer share copyright equally
- Copyright is waived entirely
Correct answer: The employer or commissioning party owns the copyright
Under work-for-hire doctrine, the employer or commissioning party is considered the legal author and owns all copyrights.
Question 5: Which of the following best defines 'transformative use' in copyright fair use analysis?
- Using a work for educational purposes only
- Adding new meaning, expression, or message beyond the original (Correct answer)
- Translating a work into another language
- Summarizing a copyrighted work
Correct answer: Adding new meaning, expression, or message beyond the original
Transformative use adds new expression or meaning to the original and is a significant factor courts weigh in fair use determinations.
Question 6: A content writer discovers their published article was ghostwritten by a colleague who received no credit. What ethical principle does this situation implicate?
- Informed consent
- Attribution and authorship integrity (Correct answer)
- Conflict of interest
- Confidentiality
Correct answer: Attribution and authorship integrity
Ghostwriting without disclosure can conflict with authorship integrity, though ghostwriting is legal when all parties agree in advance.
Question 7: When writing a sponsored article, ethical practice requires the writer to:
- Present the content as editorial to maximize credibility
- Disclose the sponsorship relationship to readers (Correct answer)
- Avoid mentioning the sponsor's product
- Submit without disclosing to the editor
Correct answer: Disclose the sponsorship relationship to readers
FTC guidelines and professional ethics require clear disclosure of material connections between writers and sponsors to avoid deceiving readers.
CPW Writing Ethics and Copyright 2
A freelance writer copies three sentences verbatim from a published article without attribution and includes them in a client deliverable.
This is best described as: