NCJ Number
169621
Date Published
Unknown
Length
10 pages
Annotation
This paper identifies privacy doctrines, notes the most common situations in which they are implicated, and offers a guide to broadcasters and their counsel in evaluating the relative risk of adverse privacy litigation.
Abstract
There are four separate legal claims that reflect the rights referred to as an individual's privacy in this context: (1) intrusion upon seclusion; (2) publication of private facts; (3) false light; and (4) misappropriation. The risk of intrusion arises before broadcast, whenever gathering information requires broadcasting personnel to overcome some physical barrier. To establish liability for publication of private facts, a plaintiff must generally show that private facts not related to an issue of public concern were publicized in a highly offensive manner. The essence of a claim for false light invasion of privacy is that the material broadcast was false or was presented in a way that could give rise to a false public impression of the plaintiff. Misappropriation involves taking another person's private characteristic and using it for commercial advantage; it primarily arises in the context of advertising. The three factors that help to estimate the likelihood that a court or jury will find a particular broadcast unreasonable in terms of the subject's privacy are: plaintiff's sympathy quotient, extent of the intrusion and means of acquisition. The article describes a rating system to evaluate the risk of privacy litigation. Notes