h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Walk into any modern art gallery and you will see pieces made up of found objects - paper, cloth, household items etc. These are either collages or montages, depending on the method. The difference is, the owners of Le Figaro newspaper do not try to extract money from the artist for using a piece of an edition from years ago.

This is what sampling does with sound and, as such, qualifies it as an art form. The best sampling exponents take something obscure and make it into something new and inspiring (e.g. DJ Shadow). The worst just take an already famous tune from a 'Best of 70s Disco' record, nick a few bars and get somebody to rap on it. If this doesn't quite qualify as theft, it's because the owner of the original music will, quite reasonably, be demanding a hefty slice of profits.

I think there should be a more clear definition of creative sampling to set it apart from this lazy opportunism.