Our 2023 Accomplishments

Giving Tuesday is here! Please take a moment now and make a donation.

In 2023, New Media Rights worked hard to provide important legal services to hundreds of artists, creators, and innovators throughout the world.

This year, we submitted extensive comments to the Copyright Office about generative artificial intelligence. We argued that the use of copyrighted material as training inputs for text generative artificial intelligence is likely a fair use under current law. We are particularly excited to continue our work related to artificial intelligence in the coming year.

We are also grateful for a $33,300 grant from the City of San Diego’s Economic Development Department to support our work with local San Diego small businesses and tech startups.

Please take a few moments to donate now to ensure that the essential legal services that we provide to hundreds of artists, creators and innovators throughout the world continue to exist.

With your support, we've done this and more 2023:

• Submitted extensive comments to the Copyright Office about generative artificial intelligence. We argued that the use of copyrighted material as training inputs for text generative artificial intelligence is likely a fair use under current law.
• Interviewed on the Pop Culture Detective: Audio Files podcast to discuss the importance of fair use and how it interacts with YouTube’s Content ID system.
• Received a $33,300 grant from the City of San Diego Economic Development Department to support our work with local San Diego small businesses.
• Continued to provide services related to consumer technology and consumer rights under a 3-year, $150,000 grant from the Rose Foundation.
• Celebrated the launch of California Western School of Law’s Law, Justice and Technology Initiative with a panel about artificial intelligence. Algorithmic Justice: The New Frontier was moderated by NMR Alum Maresa Talbert, and panelists included our friends from EFF, Corynne McSherry and Alexis Hancock.
• Continued our partnership with the San Diego Miramar College Regional Entrepreneurship Center (REC) to provide legal workshops and consultation sessions to early-stage startups.
• New Media Rights was highlighted in the 2022 AALS Student Pro Bono Hours survey, which measures the number of hours of supervised legal services that students perform through pro bono efforts, legal clinics, and other law-related public service projects. Our law students are a critical part of our mission to provide pro bono services to creators, entrepreneurs, journalists, and internet users. We’re proud of the work of our law students who provide thousands of hours of legal services each year under attorney supervision and mentorship.
• New Media Rights attended the ABA’s Antitrust Law section’s Consumer Protection and Data Privacy Conference. We even got to reconnect with some former NMR alumni who were both in attendance and speaking on a panel!
• Spoke to Wired about the Supreme Court decision in Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts, Inc. v. Goldsmith. Spoke to Business Insider about the viability of a Trump copyright lawsuit against Bob Woodward.
• Joined the tech and startup community for March Mingle to celebrate the flourishing tech scene in San Diego.
• Provided services to filmmakers and podcasters seeking legal advice related to their social impact films and projects, including a podcast about CRISPR technology, and a documentary film about the tragic sinking of a passenger ship during WWII.
• Reached the 2100th sale of our book Don’t Panic :) A Legal Guide (in plain English) for Small Businesses and Creative Professionals. Courses nationwide now use Don't Panic as part of their coursework, from UCSD, to Berklee College of Music, San Diego City College, Rochester Institute of Technology, San Diego State University, and more! You can get your copy of Don’t Panic today! 
• Brought our expertise to the community with presentations and workshops at KPBS, the Association of American Law Schools 2023 Conference on Clinical Legal Education, San Diego College of Continuing Education, and California State University Northridge.
• New Media Rights merchandise is now available!

In 2024 with your support, we plan to:

• Continue to provide free and dramatically reduced fee one-to-one legal services to underserved creators and innovators.
• Sponsor and organize various workshops, clinics, and community events throughout the San Diego region and the United States about privacy law, copyright law and digital rights.
• Work on policy initiatives.

Please take a few moments to donate now. Even if a donation isn't feasible at this time, we would appreciate it if you could take a moment to tell others about our work on social media, so that we can connect with some of the people who need us the most!

We wish you a happy holiday season and thank you for your support!