Content Originality Check

Content Originality Check

Verify that expert content is original, properly attributed, and does not infringe on copyrights. Ensures quotes are attributed, extended passages don't exceed fair use, and content is transformative rather than copied.

Token Budget: ~500 tokens Purpose: Quality control for plagiarism and copyright compliance

When to Use

• After creating or updating expert files
• Before publishing or sharing expert content
• "Check this for plagiarism"
• "Is this content original?"
• "Verify fair use compliance"
• Quality control before final commit

Inputs

What This Skill Checks

1. Quote Attribution

All direct quotes must be:

• Clearly marked as quotes (quotation marks or blockquote)
• Attributed to the source person
• Verified as authentic (cross-reference with references.md)

Red flags:

• Unattributed quotes
• Quotes presented as original content
• Fabricated quotes (no source exists)

2. Fair Use Compliance

Extended quotations must meet fair use criteria:

Red flags:

• Multiple paragraphs quoted verbatim from a single source
• Song lyrics (even short excerpts can be problematic)
• Poetry (highly protected, even short quotes)
• Extended passages from biographies or books

3. Paraphrase Originality

Paraphrased content should be:

• Substantially reworded (not just synonym substitution)
• Restructured from the original
• Combined with original analysis or commentary

Red flags:

• Sentence structure matches original exactly
• Only a few words changed from source
• Multiple consecutive paraphrased sentences from same source

4. Transformative Content

Expert voice definitions should be:

• Original synthesis of the person's philosophy
• Not copied from existing biographies or analyses
• Unique framing for this specific use case

Red flags:

• Voice description matches Wikipedia or biography verbatim
• Framework descriptions copied from original works
• Examples lifted directly from source materials

Checking Protocol

Step 1: Inventory Content Types

Scan expert files and categorize content:

Step 2: Quote Audit

For each direct quote found:

1. Verify attribution - Is the speaker clearly identified?
2. Check authenticity - Is this quote in references.md as verified?
3. Assess length - Does it exceed fair use guidelines?
4. Confirm purpose - Is it used for commentary/education?

Step 3: Passage Analysis

For extended prose sections (>50 words):

1. Search for source - Use WebSearch to check if text appears elsewhere
2. Compare structure - Does sentence structure match any source?
3. Evaluate transformation - Is this original synthesis or close paraphrase?

Step 4: Special Content Review

Flag for manual review:

• Any song lyrics (even 1-2 lines)
• Poetry excerpts
• Extended book passages (>100 words from single source)
• Proprietary methodology names (trademarked terms)
• Images or media references

Workflow

Step 1: Gather and Review Inputs

Collect all relevant information:

• Review the provided data and context
• Identify key parameters and constraints
• Clarify any ambiguities or missing information
• Establish success criteria

Step 2: Analyze the Situation

Perform systematic analysis:

• Identify patterns and relationships
• Evaluate against established frameworks
• Consider multiple perspectives
• Document key findings

Step 3: Generate Recommendations

Create actionable outputs:

• Synthesize insights from analysis
• Prioritize recommendations by impact
• Ensure recommendations are specific and measurable
• Consider implementation feasibility

Output Format

## Content Originality Check: {Expert Name}

**Folder:** `{expert_folder}`
**Date:** {YYYY-MM-DD}
**Thoroughness:** {quick/full}

### Summary

| Category | Count | Status |
|----------|-------|--------|
| Direct quotes | X | ✓ All attributed |
| Extended passages | X | ✓ Within fair use |
| Paraphrased content | X | ✓ Sufficiently transformed |
| Special content | X | ⚠ Review needed |

### Overall Status: {PASS / REVIEW NEEDED / FAIL}

---

### Quote Attribution

| Quote | File:Line | Attribution | Status |
|-------|-----------|-------------|--------|
| "{quote excerpt}..." | expertise.md:45 | ✓ Attributed to {person} | PASS |
| "{quote excerpt}..." | PROMPT.md:23 | ✗ No attribution | FAIL |

### Fair Use Analysis

| Passage | Source | Word Count | Purpose | Status |
|---------|--------|------------|---------|--------|
| Biography section | Wikipedia-style | ~150 words | Educational | ✓ PASS |
| Book excerpt | {Title} | ~250 words | Commentary | ⚠ BORDERLINE |

### Flagged Content

| Content | File:Line | Issue | Recommendation |
|---------|-----------|-------|----------------|
| Song lyric | expertise.md:89 | Copyright risk | Remove or get license |
| Close paraphrase | PROMPT.md:34 | Too similar to source | Rewrite substantially |

### Special Review Items

Items requiring human judgment:

1. **{Item}** - {explanation of concern}
2. **{Item}** - {explanation of concern}

---

### Recommendations

1. {Specific action needed}
2. {Specific action needed}

Risk Categories

Low Risk (Generally Safe)

• Biographical facts (birth dates, career events)
• Short quotes (<25 words) with attribution
• Original synthesis and analysis
• Public domain content

Medium Risk (Use Caution)

• Quotes 25-100 words with attribution
• Paraphrased methodologies
• Framework descriptions
• Voice characterizations

High Risk (Minimize or Avoid)

• Quotes >100 words
• Song lyrics (any length)
• Poetry (any length)
• Extended book passages
• Trademarked terms without acknowledgment
• Content from living authors without clear fair use justification

Very High Risk (Avoid Entirely)

• Unattributed quotes
• Verbatim copying without quotation marks
• Multiple pages from single copyrighted source
• Content presented as original when it's not

Common Issues and Fixes

Outputs

Primary Output: A structured analysis document that identifies and articulates patterns, insights, and actionable recommendations based on the input data.

Format:

## Analysis: [Topic]

### Key Findings
- [Finding 1]
- [Finding 2]
- [Finding 3]

### Recommendations
1. [Action 1]
2. [Action 2]
3. [Action 3]

Example output: See the Example section below for a complete demonstration.

Example

Input:

• input_data: [Specific example input]
• context: [Relevant background]

Output:

[Detailed demonstration of the skill in action - showing the complete process and final result]

Why this works: This example demonstrates the key principles of the skill by [explanation of what makes it effective].

Integration

With Create-Expert Workflow

Run this check:

• After Phase 3 (Training) - catch issues early
• After Phase 11 (Chapter) - before final validation
• Can be combined with Phase 12 (Validate References)

With Other Skills

• fact-check-expert: Verifies quotes are authentic
• analyze-references: Confirms sources exist
• content-originality-check: Ensures content is legally usable (this skill)

Constraints

• Not a legal opinion - This skill provides guidelines, not legal advice
• Fair use is contextual - Final determination requires human judgment
• When in doubt, rewrite - Original content is always safer than borderline fair use
• Song lyrics are special - Music publishers are aggressive; avoid lyrics entirely
• Living authors - Extra caution with recent works still generating revenue

Error Handling

Example Check

Input: experts/miles-davis/

Process:

1. Scan all files for quoted content → Found 12 quotes
2. Verify all quotes attributed → 11/12 attributed (1 missing in PROMPT.md)
3. Check quote lengths → All under 50 words ✓
4. Scan for extended passages → Found 200-word biography section
5. Search for source matches → No verbatim matches found ✓
6. Check for special content → No lyrics/poetry found ✓

Output:

Overall Status: REVIEW NEEDED

Issues:
1. PROMPT.md:67 - Quote "Do not fear mistakes..." missing attribution
   Fix: Add "Miles Davis said:" before quote

Recommendations:
1. Add attribution to unattributed quote in PROMPT.md

Quick Check (Abbreviated)

For thoroughness: quick, only check:

1. All direct quotes are attributed
2. No song lyrics or poetry present
3. No single quote exceeds 100 words

Skip: paraphrase analysis, extended passage search, full transformation review