Flat Donkey exists to celebrate comics, graphic novels, and the people who create them. Creators and publishers should retain meaningful control over how their visual work is used, especially in AI training and model development.
Flat Donkey supports creators’ and publishers’ rights through explicit Terms of Service rules governing how written and visual content may be used, along with technical measures intended to restrict the collection of images for AI training and related model development.
Permissions
Flat Donkey permits ordinary search-engine indexing of images and allows AI systems to crawl and use Flat Donkey’s original written editorial content. However, Flat Donkey does not permit automated systems to acquire visual material appearing through the Services for artificial intelligence training or related model-development purposes.
Flat Donkey uses contractual notices and available technical controls to communicate and support these preferences where reasonably possible.
Flat Donkey uses technical measures to communicate and support its rules for automated access to the Services. These measures include:
robots.txt directives and similar machine-readable instructions that communicate which automated systems may access particular content and for what purposes.
Crawler-specific access controls that restrict or block identified automated systems.
Other tools made available by Flat Donkey’s hosting or publishing platforms.
These controls are intended to distinguish permitted activities, such as ordinary search indexing and permitted use of Flat Donkey’s written editorial content, from prohibited activities, such as acquiring images for artificial intelligence training or related model-development purposes.
Automated systems are expected to comply with applicable machine-readable directives and other access restrictions. Flat Donkey may block or restrict systems that disregard these directives, attempt to circumvent technical controls, or otherwise access the Services in a manner inconsistent with these Terms. Flat Donkey cannot guarantee that every system will honor these directives or access preferences.
AI-generated material
I do not knowingly use AI-generated material in Flat Donkey.
WRITTEN MATERIAL
I do not use AI to write Flat Donkey posts. All posts are written by me or by guest authors, who are fairly compensated for their work.
IMAGES
Images used in Flat Donkey posts include:
Excerpts from works I cover, provided by publishers, creators, or approved review resources.
Original Flat Donkey brand material.
AI-GENERATED SOURCE MATERIAL
Some creators use AI in the development of their writing or illustration. In most cases, I will have no practical way of knowing whether AI was used, and I do not independently investigate or vet works for AI usage.
The use of AI among creators promises to remain a contentious topic in the years ahead. For now, a creator’s use of AI may affect my appreciation of their work, depending on the circumstances, but it will not automatically disqualify that work from consideration by Flat Donkey.
How Flat Donkey uses AI
Flat Donkey uses AI for specific, limited tasks, including:
Editing assistance, such as adherence to Flat Donkey style, which is a lightly modified version of the Chicago Manual of Style.
Organizing and cataloging Flat Donkey design system data.
Routine clerical and research-support tasks.
