I was reading an incredible poem in the WhyTimes the other day, by an author I will leave anonymous for reasons that will be made clear later on, and was disappointed to find that it was plagiarized. Plagiarism is defined by the Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary as to steal and pass off the ideas or words of another as one's own. There I was, thinking to myself, "Wow, whoever wrote this is truly talented." So I rate the poem 5 stars, and enter the BBS ready to spread praise. What do I see? The word plagiarized in capital letters. It angers me to think of the hundreds of Whyvillians who send in their articles each week hoping for them to get published, only to have a plagiarist chosen over them.
What people have to realize is that this isn't the Times Editor's fault. There is no way she could possibly check to see if each article or poem is an original, due to the fact that it would take days, and she does have a life outside of Whyville. This means that we are given the responsibility, and most importantly the trust to submit work that is nothing but our own.
On September 17, 2004 the Times Editor enforced a new plagiarism policy. The first time you plagiarize you will be suspended from the Times for two weeks. The second time you plagiarize you will be suspended from the Times for a month, and any titles you may have had will be removed. These include Times Writer, etc. The third time you plagiarize you will not be given any more chances. This means your writing privileges will be taken away permanently.
When it comes to plagiarism, there is more then meets the eye. The main types include:
The Ghost Writer
This is when a person submits another person's work, word-for-word.
The Photocopy
This is when a person uses small portions of another piece of work without making any alterations.
The Potluck Paper
This is when a person uses many different pieces of writing, and copies sentences word-for-word from each.
The Poor Disguise
This is when a person copies a piece of writing, but changes key words.
The above are all examples of intentional plagiarism, but what about unintentional? Some of you may be plagiarists without having the slightest clue.
Many people have a difficult time distinguishing between paraphrasing and plagiarizing. Paraphrasing is defined as a restatement of a text or passage giving the meaning in another form, as for clearness; rewording. A lot of the time writers are guilty of not paraphrasing enough. An improper citation could also give you the label as a plagiarist. Citations are used to give credit to the original author. A citation should include information about the author, the title of the piece of writing, the name and location of the publishing company, the date it was published, and the page number of the passage you are borrowing. A citation is only necessary when using quotes, another person's idea, if you paraphrase, and when you make a reference to another writer.
Whether a person plagiarizes intentionally or not, they could receive up to $250,000 in fines, or ten years in prison.
So you may be thinking to yourself right about now, who would be dumb enough to plagiarize? The reality is a lot of people are guilty of doing just that. 80% of high school students have admitted to cheating, 95% of them say they have never been caught, and 51% of them didn't believe they were doing anything wrong! Oh, and that's just the half of it. 85% of college students believe cheating is necessary to be successful, 75% of them have admitted to cheating, and 90% don't believe they will get caught.
Plagiarism is a serious issue and should not be taken lightly. If you aren't confident enough with the piece you're submitting, either work longer on it or don't write any at all. There are many great articles in the Times that are dedicated to giving you tips on improving your work. Some include article ID's 8119, 8192, 8225, and 8293.
~ntwt
Author's Note: Sources: http://www.plagiarism.org
