Attributing Openly Licensed Content

We give others credit for their work, not only because it is a requirement of the license but also because it is the right thing to do. Your creation would not exist without the original author’s work, so it is only fair that you acknowledge their contribution by including a well-done attribution in your work.

What Information Do I Need?

The ideal Creative Commons attribution will include the following information:

1. Title: Name of the material if provided; however, some creators choose to leave their works untitled.

2. Author: The name of the author or authors of the material; unless the author has specifically requested that you not attribute content to them.
3. Source: Where can the content be found? This is usually a link to a website or document.
4. License: Provide which type of CC license the content is published under and provide a link.

The shaded area below is an example of how attribution information is typically be formatted:

You may also need to add the following information, depending on what notices were present when you accessed the material and how you used it:

• If there any other copyright notices, notices that refer to the disclaimer or warranties, or notices of previous modifications,  you should keep this information and copy it into your attribution.
• If you modified the material yourself, you should add a note indicating what modifications you made and what terms the new work is being licensed under.
• If you are using an adaptation of an already adapted work, you should credit the creators of the previous works and the creator of the adaption.

Where Should I Display Attribution Information?

Attribution should be given in a manner that is reasonable for the medium you are working in. Here are some of the most common practices for attributing content.

• Written documents and images: place the attribution information next to the Creative Commons material or include it as a footer toward the bottom of the page.
• Slideshows: include the attribution information as a footer on the bottom of the slide that the work appears on.
• Videos: show the attribution information for the material used when it appears on screen.
• Podcasts: mention the artist’s name, that the work is under a Creative Commons license during the podcast, and provide full attribution next to where the podcast is available online.
• Music: Audio cannot be used if copywritten under CC No Derivatives(CC BY-ND). Audio has very strict copyright restrictions and for more detail, you can view the webpage here.

If the standard attribution methods are not suited for your particular project, you can always include a credits section in your work to display the necessary attribution information.

Resources

If you are new to attributing content, consider using the resources below:

• Open Washington’s Attribution Builder, a site to help create and format attribution information
• Attributing Creative Commons Materials, a detailed guide to attributing Creative Commons content

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