Are wide-spread funny pics royalty-free?

[mmitdd]

Hi everybody,

I'm sure you have seen many blogs that use really cool or funny pictures (like "owned", "fail" etc).

Some of these pictures are posted on hundreds of sites online.

My question is: Is this OK to do - or does it violate any rules (legal or ethical)?

I would like to be able to contact the original creator of such pictures and ask for permission to use them - but I don't even know where to start.

Are such pictures royalty-free? Or is there a source that creates such images that I could contact?

I have searched for the answer on Google for almost 2 hours but was unable to find an answer.

I have looked into several stock image sites but they only appear to have the same old (boring) pictures.

I would really appreciate some feedback on this.

Thanks in advance for any insights you can provide...

[eventus]

No not necessarily.. Just because something is widespread doesn't mean you can just take it.

That is neither ethical or moral. and in most cases would also be illegal.

[SteveWh]

In addition to the "stock images" search you did, another term you might try is "clip art".

Or try creating some images yourself even if you're not an artist. Even if the result looks not-completely-successful, its originality might be more eye-catching and make a better impression on the page than a "perfect" image that people have seen on a hundred other websites.