Scary military reaction to General Ogolla crash | Kenya news

Monday, April 02, 2007

Hey What Are You Doing About The Spyman Guys Copying Your Content Word For Word?

Several people have written to ask me what I am going to do with the numerous emerging incidents where several publications are using this blog to mine for ideas and in some cases are plagiarizing the content word for word.

A new gutter press publication with an impressive countrywide distribution has in their latest issue copied several stories from this blog word for word without giving any credit to Kumekucha. The 12 page A3 newspaper format publication is called The Spyman. Their rather odd and in a way ironic slogan is; concentrated, concise, cordite and corrosive. It has surely proved corrosive in terms of content on this site.

Yesterday's edition of the Sunday Standard gave prominence to a topic that we have been dealing with here most of last week. (See story for yourself).

In a way this is the highest form of flattery anybody can give. It means that The Spyman editorial team or one-man-show thinks so highly of the content of this blog that they feel it is their duty to ensure that more Kenyans who are not familiar with the web or with this site can get access to the information. Of course it is illegal and all they would have needed to do to make it legal would have been to put a small blurb at the end of the articles with the words; 'courtesy kumekucha.blogspot.com.' I am getting some legal advice on the best way forward on this.

There is of course nothing illegal about what the Sunday Standard did. All they did (and have been doing for some time now) was to borrow a few ideas from this blog, which is acceptable. It would also imply that this newspaper and at least one political analyst at the Daily Nation trust the information on this site.

Nothing to brag about really and this blogger has never been a bragger. Still I was asked the question and I have answered it publicly rather than sitting down to write several emails including one that would have gone to Spyman (but now I am sure that the person responsible will see this article the next time they are here for their regular cut and paste operation—that's why I have mentioned the publication in my headline).

Explore the power of free online viral marketing in Kenya

1 comment:

  1. What, is this another ad for the pro-ODM East African Standard or is it just confirming my longstanding suspicions that you are an insider at Standard/KTN? What with your former 'scandals' about Nation Center. You also have double standards 'Chris'.Read this from your blog:Of course it is illegal(about Spyman) .But about Standard: There is of course nothing illegal about what the Sunday Standard did. All they did (and have been doing for some time now) was to borrow a few ideas from this blog, which is acceptable..... Cheap shot posts is all you do,Mr ODM.Consider renaming your blog (suggestion:half-ass-info.blogspot.com)

    ReplyDelete

Any posts breaking the house rules of COMMON DECENCY will be promptly deleted, i.e. NO TRIBALISTIC, racist, sexist, homophobic, sexually explicit, abusive, swearing, DIVERSIONS, impersonation and spam AMONG OTHERS. No exceptions WHATSOEVER.