Loss of employment as a Result of Plagiarism

Loss of employment as a Result of Plagiarism

Student’s Name

Institution

Loss of Employment due to Plagiarism

‘’Led Zeppelin are being sued for plagiarism over their iconic hit Stairway to Heaven. The band has been served legal papers on behalf of late Randy California for the song which had earned a reported $562 MILLION’’ said James Robertson, a writer for Mirror Magazine. (Robertson, 2014). The iconic rockers risks losing millions of dollars in this lawsuit. The band Spirit claims that Led Zeppelin lifted from their track Taurus, Stairway to Heaven’s opening soundtrack. There had been claims for years that the sound tracks were same but it has taken more than thirty years for legal action to be taken against them. They plagiarized the band Spirit’s song and it is about time that they are brought to book. Led Zeppelin allegedly wrote the song in 1970, two years after the band Spirit had released it. The two bands have shared the same stage in fact, proving that friends can stab you in the back too.

Plagiarism is defined as wrongful appropriation and stealing or publication of another author’s language, thoughts, ideas or expressions and representation of them as ones original work. It is considered unlawful and one can be charged for such an offense. It is important that we avoid practicing plagiarism both in school and beyond. First of all plagiarism reduces a person’s credibility since trust is lost on all his works. It also increases the chances of one spending his time behind bars as law suits start cropping up. Embarrassment will be faced too as the public won’t hesitate to rebuke you and criticize you for not being honest about the original source of your work. Some students have been expelled from schools and some in their professions lost their jobs in the name of plagiarism.

Copying then pasting work from the internet to your articles is one way through which students can unwittingly perpetrate academic dishonesty without realizing it. Students also practice plagiarism by getting information from books, articles or journals without properly citing their sources. In some cases, some students don’t cite sources at all. Some students also use in their work images that were taken by other photographers without giving credit where credit is due. When they deliver their assignments or reports some contain up to 97% plagiarism.

Students should always ensure that they properly credit ideas that they use in their work. Steps to be taken would include researching and mastering how to perfectly credit ideas. This is vital as if you properly credit the ideas then you won’t be accused of plagiarism. Copy and pasting someone’s work should also be avoided at all cost as this is a great act of plagiarism. A student should master the art of paraphrasing. This is possible if one reads the research materials and understands them then writes in his own words instead of writing them word by word. Though referencing in such circumstances should not be neglected either.

In conclusion, plagiarism is an evil that no student should considering venturing into. Led Zeppelin can attest to this as earlier on we realized that they are yet to lose millions of dollars in law suits. The consequences can face anyone both in school and out in the real world. We are therefore advised to shun this vice as we wouldn’t want to regret when we are faced with the punishment.

References

Lubbe, I., Modack, G., & Watson, A. (2011). Accounting GAAP. OUP Catalogue.

Gourlay, L., & Deane, J. (2012). Loss, responsibility, blame? Staff discourses of student plagiarism. Innovations in Education and Teaching International, 49(1), 19-29.