OVERVIEW
Target audience: Site Administrators, Site Managers, Site Editors
In compliance with copyright laws, images in the Web Management System (WMS) can be attributed to their proper sources using the Credit field and License settings options.
For more information, see https://www.mcgill.ca/copyright.
In this article:
About image attribution
Whenever an image is added to content in the WMS, there may be a legal requirement (under copyright law) to correctly attribute its source.
Images distributed under a Creative Commons license are the most widely used. There are six different Creative Commons licenses, each with its own license features, also called Commons Deeds. The image's creator chooses a license to retain copyright over their work and establish the conditions under which others may use it. For example, the license terms may require that the creator be given credit and that a link to the specific Commons Deed be provided.
Find more information about Creative Commons licenses on their website.
Adding credit or license information
Depending on an image's particular Commons Deed, you may need to add Credit information, License information, or both.
To add Credit or License information:
- Add an image using the WYSIWYG editor (in any content type where this is possible) by clicking the Media Browser button. For more information, see: Add an image to a page in the WMS.
Note: If there is already an existing image in the WYSIWYG editor, select the image and then click the Media Browser button. - In the Embedding window, enter the appropriate information in the Credit field.
- Scroll down to License settings for this image and select the appropriate option.
- Click Submit. The Credit or License information will appear in a black bar directly below the image. The Credit information is prefaced with the text "Image by," while the License setting appears as a button with the abbreviation of the Commons Deed, linking to that deed on the Creative Commons website.
Image with credit and license displayed
Note: The WYSIWYG editor automatically wraps attributed images in a <p> tag, which is expected behavior. However, this means that when a mix of attributed and non-attributed images are placed side-by-side in the WYSIWYG editor, this will result in the published page displaying the images stacked vertically (like paragraphs) instead of aligned horizontally as expected. To display a mix of attributed and non-attributed images aligned side-by-side, placing them in a grid is recommended. Please see Grid displays with ol and ul lists in the WMS for instructions.
NOTE:
Currently, image attribution can only be applied directly to images added via the WYSIWYG editor via the Media Browser. Images can also be uploaded as separate image fields on some content types (e.g., certain blocks, Articles, Channels items, etc.). Still, at this time, it is not possible to specify the Credit or License settings for those images.
As a workaround, the information could be entered directly in the Body — similar to a footnote — referencing the Featured Image.
