TLKFAPS BANNATION

[SnowLeopard3000]

TLKFAPS, the DA account dedicated to banning art theft, has been banned. I have yet to find out why but I need everyone's help to get it unbanned. I know many of you guys have DA accounts. Please band together to help get TLKFAPS unbanned! I have already sent a note to the DA staff, and I expect they wont like me after they read it. Also, I am going to make a new account there to replace TLKFAPS. If bad rumors about me spread, ignore them. DA doesnt like me anymore.

[Majordomo]

Snow, let me ask you something: Have you ever been stolen from directly?

If yes, you should handle each case as quietly and civilly as possible, only being concerned about your stolen art. Talk to them, show them your original posting of the work of art with the date, etc. just keeping it as quiet as possible. If any other artists are involved, notify them about their pictures only. They will handle it as they see fit.

If no (or if it has been stolen from another artist), notify the artist to whom it belongs. They will decide whether or not they think the threat is really a threat, and they can handle it themselves. Outside "support" really isn't support at all. It's almost bordering on trolling, really, when several artists pounce on someone with stolen art when the message has clearly been told already. Also, if you think you've seen something somewhere before, but can't place your finger on it, don't say a word. It may be stolen, or it may be a reference to a popular picture, it may just be that good, but you can't accuse someone of theft if you're not even sure who the original owner is (not that you are, but I see it happen a lot).

[SnowLeopard3000]

Thank you for the reply. Actually, TLKFAPS does not really go after art thefts. We do, in fact, notify artists whose art we think has been stolen. We exist mostly to bring cases to the attention of whoever we think needs to know. And, of course, if we went after the supposed thieves ourselves, DA does not pay attention to it unless complaints are made by the original artists. Which is why we try to bring it to their attention.

As for your first question, no my art has never been stolen (as far as I know). But art theft is a horrible crime that has driven many artists to hold back, and try to keep their wonderful art safe from art thieves with the side effect that fewer people may have the priviledge of viewing it.

I know it can be annoying when someone jumps into an issue that doesn't really affect them, but I feel that art theft is a virulent problem that needs to be stopped, or at least slowed as much as possible.

Thank you for reading,

-Sno

[Simba]

dA accounts are meant for posting art on, not for reporting art theft. so the reason for it being banned was that it was being used by multiple people and wasn't being used for art. everyone who was using TLKFAPS can still report art theft, just not with that account. so there's no reason to have it unbanned.

[SnowLeopard3000]

But we did upload art! There was at least one picture in that gallery, so technically that can't be it. But thanks for the suggestion.

[Majordomo]

Thank you for the reply. Actually, TLKFAPS does not really go after art thefts. We do, in fact, notify artists whose art we think has been stolen. We exist mostly to bring cases to the attention of whoever we think needs to know. And, of course, if we went after the supposed thieves ourselves, DA does not pay attention to it unless complaints are made by the original artists. Which is why we try to bring it to their attention.

Well, "Who we think needs to know" and "who needs to know" are two different groups. The only person that needs to know about theft is the original artist, and you should tell them as privately as possible. Then they decide who else needs to know.

From the sounds of it, you don't even need a special account to do what you're doing. Just keep your own separate accounts and notify original artists when you notice (and are 100% sure that) art has been stolen. From there on, it's none of your business.

As for your first question, no my art has never been stolen (as far as I know). But art theft is a horrible crime that has driven many artists to hold back, and try to keep their wonderful art safe from art thieves with the side effect that fewer people may have the priviledge of viewing it.

OK, then, just so we're on the same page, what constitutes "art theft"? How do you know that it's driven such a large amount of artists to stop producing? And what makes art theft more worthy of your attention than fighting trolling or a lack of appreciation/acknowledgment (both even bigger causes of artists 'quitting')? And why just Lion King art? If you're going to fight art theft, I'd think you'd fight it wherever it occurs. (These are just questions. I don't mean them to come across as snide. I'm just trying to understand your position)

I know it can be annoying when someone jumps into an issue that doesn't really affect them, but I feel that art theft is a virulent problem that needs to be stopped, or at least slowed as much as possible.

Well, it's "annoying" (as you put it) because I don't see how you can understand how the any original artist views the situation unless you've experienced it yourself. I agree that art theft is a problem. It was even before the internet came into existence. But "Virulent"? Not so much. I fail to see any signs of it spreading or gaining popularity. In fact, it seems to have been on the downturn over the past 6 months from what I've seen.

[SnowLeopard3000]

"Who we think needs to know" is who will be notified, and then they can decide whether or not to do anything. We are not going after the thieves ourselves. And the special account is pretty much to bring attention of art theft to the public and raise awareness. Why is that a bad thing?

In my opinion, art theft can be defined by use of pieces of art without permission from the original artist, use of a char without permission, or anything else that involves taking somethng that someone else created and using it without permission. And it is only tlk art because that's how the group was when I joined.

Of course I can't understand how they feel because it hasn't happened to me. but it can't be good. TLKFAPS is meant to combat this illegal
activity that leeches off of legit artists. And if art theft has been declning, we should keep going - no need to stop just bcause it is smaller.

I am very disappointed in the lack of support for this group.

[Mike]

Suffice to say, Art theft is a touchy subject.

While I applaud your enthusiasm, I wonder whether what you're doing really helps solve the problem. If the artists that create art are truly going to be affected by a theft, they will certainly see it when it happens, and will already be aware of the problem. In other cases, being informed that your art has been stolen would (if it were me) just feel like a hassle or an attack. Controlling something you post on the internet is just not possible, and the best you can do is leave it to the admins of each individual site. After all, there really are no police on the internet, or they're too busy looking for child molesters and other serious crime. We're lucky to have a reasonable, active, and principled admin here at MLK, but if other sites are not as reputable there's very little that anyone can do.

I think using a separate account to report art thefts is a bad idea though, it can be done just as easily, and much more privately with a main account. When it comes down to it, art theft is a matter for the original artist to treat however they want, and a friendly notice is often taken much better than a "report"

[SnowLeopard3000]

Yes. I agree with that. I just feel like if I can do something to stop art theft I should.

[SnowLeopard3000]

I am very disappointed in the lack of support for this. I'm deleting this topic if it gets any mote negative comments. I'm very sorry but I'm getting really tired of having to deal with them.