Can You Plagiarise Yourself?

[forever_town]

I'd given some thought to simply reprinting columns I've written for my paper since they were relevant. However, I always ended up either writing about a completely different topic or I'd write a new column about the same topic. I might sometimes make reference to something I'd previously written, but I wouldn't try to pass off old material as new. That would fail the sniff test.

If you recast your previous material from the same publication, rewrite it, whatever, it's fair game.

 

[Pete Incaviglia]

Hope this doesn't make too much sense: Ask your editor for an answer.

I'm on days today and my SE on nights. And the ME is on vacation. The inmates are running the jail!

 

[Pete Incaviglia]

Don't do it. ESPECIALLY if it originally appeared a month ago. It's not even a matter of plagiarism, it's just lazy and lame. Someone will notice. Doesn't look good.

For the record. I rewrote it. I pared it down a bit. Reworked something to the top. It's not even close to the original. Although, the original would have sufficed.

 

[PeterGibbons]

I'm just saying I don't think using a sentence you've already written before is automatically wrong.

Wouldn't this mean some reporters plagiarize themselves on a weekly basis while covering some High school (and even pro teams) since most of them give pretty much the same three quotes after every game?

 

[MU_was_not_so_hard]

While I fully believe you can plagiarize yourself, I think it points to a bigger problem: A view of laziness.
Absolutely nothing wrong with re-using information you've already gathered, but part of our profession is to keep stuff newsworthy and timely. There's almost always something that can be touched up to make sure it's the most accurate you can make it.

 

[Frank_Ridgeway]

On some papers there is a written policy against lifting any staff copy out of the archives, although to me this seems a bit extreme and arbitrary. You find out an hour before deadline that a famous local person dies, which is worse -- a story filled with background that's already been in the paper or waiting another day to tell people the guy croaked? In the case of a column in which deadline is not an issue, find fresh info and fresh way of telling it.

 

[Fenian_Bastard]

At worst, it's a venial sin.

 

[fishwrapper]

So, if Mitch Albom took three paragraphs -- (he really liked a phrase he turned) -- from his last year's March Madness Preview column and threw them into this season's installment, that would be a minor offense?

 

[ADifferentOkie]

So, if Mitch Albom took three paragraphs -- (he really liked a phrase he turned) -- from his last year's March Madness Preview column and threw them into this season's installment, that would be a minor offense?

The offense is not made more major just because the person who does it is generally disliked on this board, wouldn't you say?

 

[fishwrapper]

So, if Mitch Albom took three paragraphs -- (he really liked a phrase he turned) -- from his last year's March Madness Preview column and threw them into this season's installment, that would be a minor offense?

The offense is not made more major just because the person who does it is generally disliked on this board, wouldn't you say?

That sentence hurt my head.

 

[ADifferentOkie]

So, if Mitch Albom took three paragraphs -- (he really liked a phrase he turned) -- from his last year's March Madness Preview column and threw them into this season's installment, that would be a minor offense?

The offense is not made more major just because the person who does it is generally disliked on this board, wouldn't you say?

That sentence hurt my head.

Then don't plagiarize it, you *******.

 

[Batman]

So, if Mitch Albom took three paragraphs -- (he really liked a phrase he turned) -- from his last year's March Madness Preview column and threw them into this season's installment, that would be a minor offense?

Only if he intended to use it, then didn't actually show up to work to use it.

 

[ZummoSports]

I'm just saying I don't think using a sentence you've already written before is automatically wrong.

Wouldn't this mean some reporters plagiarize themselves on a weekly basis while covering some High school (and even pro teams) since most of them give pretty much the same three quotes after every game?

No...the coach is giving us the same three quotes after every game. He's plagiarizing himself.