Blogging about life in Minnesota, raising our six kids with Down syndrome while battling Breast Cancer.

Be the kind of woman that when your feet hit the floor in the morning the devil says, "Oh shit! She's up!"

Sunday, July 01, 2012

Spotlight on Adoptions?

A couple weeks ago a new blog showed up. "Adoption Spotlight" focus is pointing out issues with US agencies and organizations who are involved with international adoption. There is very little on the blog  that is actually written by the blog owner. Instead he or she lifts things from other people's blogs.

Several people have asked me if I'm behind the "Adoption Spotlight" blog. I can assure you I am not! I found the link to it on another blog reformtalk.net  (another blog I occasionally read but don't necessarily agree with!) I contacted administrators of Reformtalk and asked who gave them the link, since they posted it when it was brand new. They wouldn't tell me who sent it, and had no idea who was writing it.

The Adoption Spotlight blog has lifted a blog post I wrote regarding Serbian adoptions, and stated "it is something of a guest editorial." I was very irritated to find this, because 1) I would not have allowed someone to post something of mine without linking back to my blog or putting my name to it. 2) It was taken without my permission. 3) I don't like the tone or "vision" of this blog and would have never approved something of mine to be posted on it.

I have contacted Wordpress, the blog host, and notified them there is plagiarized material on the blog. Wordpress in turn sent me the copyright guidelines and told me what I need to do. I have notified the blog owner (through comments since there is no other way to contact them) that they MUST remove my post. Not only have my comments not been published, but the writer has refused to remove my post.

Having said that, it is pretty easy to go back and read through any of my blog posts and compare them to what is written on "Adoption Spotlight" and see the writing style is not anything close to mine. I may be an intelligent and educated person, but I tend to write the way I talk. Most who read here who know me in person say when the read my posts they can hear my voice. You won't hear my voice anywhere on "Adoption Spotlight" except in what has been stolen from me.

6 comments:

Mel said...

All I can say to that is HA! And, by the way, I agree, I can hear you when I read too. :) t

Anna said...

I'm so sorry. I would hate to know content from my blog was used without my permission. im hoping you can get this matter resolved.

DandG said...

They also quote your email exchange here:
http://theadoptionspotlight.wordpress.com/2012/06/15/reeces-rainbow-their-ukrainian-facilitator-serge-and-breaking-the-law/

Leah Spring said...

The email exchange doesn't bother me as much, because it took place on a public yahoo group that is open to anyone to read.

DandG said...

The blog is public and "open to anyone to read", too. How do you see the difference? Ultimately, this is at the root of this whole issue, no? If you, or I, or a foreign government, puts data online, what constitutes legitimate use of that data without express permission?

Leah Spring said...

It is very different. The writer posted my work as if I had given permission for it to be posted. Anything written on a blog is copyrighted which is why wordpress removed it. The emails on the list serve fall under a slightly different category, and one can easily see the context in which they were written. (though the writer should have given the information WHERE they came from. Clearly the writer isn't very versed in the area of copy/pasting what other people have written. Interestingly I have had the same problem with another blogger on the same topic (Russian adoption) who claimed to "not know" it wasn't ok, and yet she is a well-educated person who DOES indeed know better.