Lessig on Copyright, Remixed

Lawrence Lessig has been working in the area of copyright law for years. He's the go-to guy for explanations of what's wrong with copyright law, and how it might be changed to permit the kinds of uses that are already happening all around us (ahem, mashups, filesharing, remixes, etc.) while retaining important rights for copyright holders. Lessig recently wrote Remix, an appeal for reason against a system that criminalizes today's children, making remixing illegal. Lessig recently made an appearance on The Colbert Report that's worth a look -- Lessig and Colbert make a good point about the difference between a remix (making something new) and theft. (Note: for a much deeper discussion of the topic, check out the Fresh Air interview from December.) But first, the Colbert interview:

And of course, because the whole point of this interview is remixing -- building upon existing work to create new work -- a series of remixes of the interview immediately appeared online. Here's my favorite -- but be warned, the sound is much louder than the previous video, so you might want to turn down your speakers a bit:

A few more remixes after the jump.

This is the most viewed Colbert/Lessig remix on YouTube (WARNING: really loud sound!):

This one is sort of an ambient remix -- weird video effects and trance beats:

And this one turns the interview into a sort of chair-dancing performance:

Again, if you actually care about the topic I'd really recommend listening to the Fresh Air interview with Lessig. He's a smart guy with a good point. If you're interested in Lessig's other work, check out Lessig on Obama from before the election.

(Via Waxy.org.)