I've just been editing a video, and I've found that many old newsreel films that were out of copyright have been bought up by big agencies who now hold the copyright.
Damn, that kind of stuff really makes me unreasonably angry. How is is that even possible? Shouldn't it just remain in the public domain?
Completely agree with the rest of your post and just want to say that I commend you for actively trying to do something about it. With the recent votes in EU parliament for these new copyright rules (article 11 & 13), I called to every party in my country to ask them personally about their stance.
Good! We will beat this! I cannot imagine who benefits from these laws, except for big business interests and maybe a small handful of very privileged artists, but certainly not most of the people who slog their butts off to produce the work!