I’ve seen the documentary filmmakers Statement before, and I do think it’s a direction the open education world may go eventually, especially since this document seems to be effective for documentary filmmakers.

But your point about fair use is spot on, and something that the open education movement hasn’t discussed nearly enough. There’s still a fear about the gray areas of fair use that keeps educators from taking advantage of it. That’s especially bad because one thing that courts use to decide whether use is fair use is whether that use is standard in the community.

Documentary filmmakers have addressed this by developing a Statement of Best Practices in Fair Use:
http://www.centerforsocialmedia.org/resources/publications/statement_of_best_practices_in_fair_use/

Because it comes from the community, it’s expected to carry a great deal of weight in the courts.

Perhaps it’s time for organizations that represent educators to come together to draft a statement of best practices in fair use for our community?