'Planet Of The Humans' Is Taken Down By YouTube Over Copyright Claims

Anyone who has watched "Planet Of The Humans" is entitled to have its own opinion about the documentary. You already know mine, but not Toby Smith's. His view counts much more because part of that documentary is composed of pieces of Smith's work, "Rare Earthenware." And he did not like it. More than that, Smith asked YouTube to remove it due to copyright infringements. YouTube agreed with Smith, and "Planet Of The Humans" is no longer online.

Smith's documentary is above. He discussed the production of rare earth minerals more than five years ago. According to his interview with "The Guardian," he did not want his work associated with something he does not agree with. He did not get directly in touch with Jeff Gibbs or with Michael Moore – respectively, the director and executive producer of the documentary – because he did not want to negotiate. He just wanted the documentary taken down for as long as it contains his footages.

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One of the points Smith makes is that the documentary presents "misleading use of facts." Michael Evan Mann, a scientist famous for his fight against climate change, said that "Planet Of The Humans" did "a grave disservice to us and the planet."

The documentary basically accuses the green movement of associating with billionaires and capitalists to destroy the environment. It also claims renewable energy sources – such as solar and wind – are not green. Electric cars are also presented as environment villains.

While making all these accusations, the movie does not present any viable alternative. It only mentions the human population is just excessive. Right at the beginning, it asks, "How would they know when it is their time to go?" in reference to mankind.

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Gibbs said his documentary did not break any copyright law and that its removal from YouTube was "censorship" and an attack on "the right to free speech." He also said he is working on getting it back online, probably editing "Planet Of The Humans" to remove "Rare Earthenware" parts. That will not help if other videomakers decide to make new copyright infringement claims against him, so he may have to contact all of them just to make sure that will be a permanent fix.

Source: The Guardian via The Verge

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