HackerTube.dev

Copying Is Not Theft - Official Version

Question Copyright · 915.3K views · 2010-04-02 · 1:00

Open on YouTube ↗

If playback is restricted in your region, try opening the original video. Use Mark watched to add it to your marked videos.

Overview

Nina Paley's one-minute animated free culture anthem with vocals by Connie Champagne, arguing that copying is not theft.

On Hacker News

Linked constantly in copyright and piracy debates as a short explainer of the difference between copying and physical theft.

Recommended by 6 HN people across 6 months · HN mentions 2010–2026

Topics

Law, policing & justiceFree speech, censorship & civil libertiesHacker culture & free software
Search by tags
nina paleycopyrightpiracyfree cultureanimation

What people said

vibragiel · 2010-12 · Strong recommendation

When this video* was published, I thought the idea it tells was too obvious and well known, but time proved me wrong it seems. Please watch it. (*) [VIDEO]

Read the original HN comment ↗
autoexec · 2023-12 · Recommendation

Which dictionary defines taking as simply gaining or acquiring something? If you "take" something from someone else it generally means that they no longer have what you took. This is all really pretty simple: [VIDEO] Also, (at least in the US) legally copyright infringement is distinct from stealing.

Read the original HN comment ↗
glerk · 2022-04 · Recommendation

It’s been more than a decade since I had the opportunity to plug this educative video in an internet conversation: [VIDEO]

Read the original HN comment ↗

Sources

Video by Question Copyright, played through YouTube.

Data and selection notes

HN summaries and labels may contain AI errors. HN dates refer to discussions, not video publication.

HN Library: HackerTube export (2026-10-31) and open-index/hacker-news. Upstream summaries and classifications may contain AI errors.

Views, duration and playback status refresh separately from the published catalog. When an update fails, existing data remains visible.

Selection checks
  • SaaS & AI candidates: Topic keywords do not match
  • Editor-approved picks: Editorial review is required

Rule matches identify candidates. They do not guarantee video quality or financial results.

About the library and its sources