If you want to use published material, the first point of contact is usually the publisher, who may be able to give you permission or give you some information about whom to contact. For unpublished material, the first point of contact is usually the author.
No. Copyright protects the expression or form that the ideas take. The idea of an article about the Olympic Games, for example, is not protected by copyright. A person who writes about the Olympic Games can take action against others reproducing his or her written work, but cannot prevent others from writing their own work on the Olympic Games or using ideas or information from his or her work.
Plagiarism generally means taking and using another person’s ideas, writing or inventions as your own. Plagiarism is not an area of law and not all acts of plagiarism are necessarily infringements of copyright. For instance, a writer or academic may breach the ethical standards expected of him or her by presenting someone else’s ideas as his or her own, but not infringe copyright because he or she has expressed the other person’s ideas in his own way.
No. Copyright protects the expression or form that the ideas take. The idea of an article about the life and work of Madonna, for example, is not protected. A person who writes about Madonna can take action against others reproducing his or her written work, but cannot prevent others from writing their own work on Madonna or using ideas or information from his or her work.
An interview can be a literary work protected by copyright if it has been recorded in “material form” (such as on an audiotape, in notes or on a digital file).
Where a journalist prepares questions, structures the interview and writes up and edits the final work for publication, the journalist (or his/her employer) will usually own copyright in the resulting written work. However, this copyright may be subject to an underlying copyright in the material supplied by the interviewee. In some cases, the journalist (and their employer) and the interviewee may be joint authors of the work. On the other hand, where a journalist merely transcribes a story told by another person, the storyteller will usually be the owner of copyright.
If you intend to interview a person, it may be a good idea to have a written agreement or release form, which at least sets out what you may do with the material gathered during the interview. This will particularly be the case if you know at the time of the interview that you are likely to want to use the material for something other than an article (for example a book or documentary). See above under “Dealings with copyright”.
Journalists have moral rights in their written work. Generally, anyone reproducing an article by you has an obligation to attribute you as the writer, as well as to get permission from whoever owns the copyright. However, they may not have this obligation if you have consented in writing to non-attribution or if it is reasonable not to attribute you.