Maira Sutton Global Policy Analyst, Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) Parker Higgins Activist, Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) Creative Commons Global Summit 2015, Seoul, Korea

1. Unpacking an
Activist Toolbox
EFF's Tools and Tips for
Effective Copyright Advocacy
Maira Sutton, Global Policy Analyst
Parker Higgins, Activist

2. CC Summit, 2015-10-16
The Challenges
• Diffuse interest countering a concentrated
power
• Sorry to break it to you folks, but copyright policy
is not, by default, very interesting to mere
mortals
• The irrational arguments against sensible policy
can feel very strong
– Starving artists!
– That's stealing!
– Property!

3. CC Summit, 2015-10-16
Theory of change
●
“I am increasingly convinced that the
difference between effective and ineffective
people is their skill at developing a theory of
change.” –Aaron Swartz
●
Move backwards from the outcome you
want, not forwards from what you know

4. CC Summit, 2015-10-16
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Not always explicit, but it can help!
●
Will “awareness” drive policymakers to
make better decisions?
●
Can public pressure convince a platform to
implement better policies?
●
Will a well-placed message or anecdote
reframe the debate?

5. CC Summit, 2015-10-16
●
OR do we really need something less
glamorous, but just as important? Is it just
about making sure the right people hear
the right thing at the right time?
●
Not every campaign has to be a blow-out
grassroots uprising

6. CC Summit, 2015-10-16
Walking the talk
EFF's core values, around privacy and
empowering users, shapes the campaigns
we run

7. CC Summit, 2015-10-16
●
We don't collect more data than necessary
or use “tricks,” so our absolute numbers
may be lower
●
BUT we can really embrace the sharing
ethos, and our campaign messages spread
further than we could push it

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What did we need from our
tools?
●
Deploy attractive web pages quickly that
explain issues and urge users to action
●
Contacting legislators, signing a petition,
picking up the phone, tweeting a
message*
●
Control as much of the stack as possible,
after SOPA headaches

9. CC Summit, 2015-10-16
*an aside on tweeting
●
Often lumped in with “clicktivism,” but
let's talk theory of change!
●
Lawmakers still frequently check their
own Twitter accounts, and a few well-
placed tweets matter
●
It comes up in hearings! It's wild!

10. CC Summit, 2015-10-16
The result: Action Center

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Petition action

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Contact congress action

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Tweet action

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Built on contact-congress

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democracy.io

16. CC Summit, 2015-10-16
What about social media?
●
Awareness-raising and messaging efforts
are totally valid and can be exciting
campaigns
●
Where do we do these? Follow Sutton's
Law, and go to the platforms people use
●
But prepare to invest time. It takes effort
to meet people where they are.

17. CC Summit, 2015-10-16
Twitter campaigns
●
Images, images, images. Current trend is
~2:1
●
Look at how SOPA coverage unfolded!
●
Think about theory of change. Right now,
you can ask yourself the Snowden
question.

18. CC Summit, 2015-10-16
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Really, can't overstate the importance of
knowing the platform. This is a cost of
doing business.
●
You should be able to tell a story of who
will be taking part

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Hashtags?
●
EFF basically does not use hashtags.
●
Why? Well, for one thing, they make your
tweet uglier.
●
But also, you lose control of the arena.
●
And, they don't provide much value to the
people you're trying to convince

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Exceptions!
●
Hashtags are great for names of people,
for news around a story, or that very rare
opportunity where people can run with it

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#freebassel

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#tellviceverything

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Other messaging guidelines
●
Think about the words you're using
– Can we avoid “intellectual property”?
– Do you mean copyright “protection”? Or do you mean
“restriction”?
●
Verbs. Gotta love verbs. Especially action
verbs.
●
First few characters before people stop
reading

24. CC Summit, 2015-10-16
Big room discussion
●
Let's talk about campaigns or strategies or
tactics that you've led, worked on,
participated in, or just observed. Local and
regional are a big plus!
●
What worked, and what didn't?
●
What software or tech would have helped
you? How can we get that to you?

25. CC Summit, 2015-10-16
questions?
Parker Higgins // parker@eff.org // @xor
Maira Sutton // maira@eff.org // @maira