False Light Misappropriation Essay

False light invasion of privacy occurs when information is published about a person that is false or places the person in a false light, is highly offensive to a reasonable person, and is published with knowledge or in reckless disregard of whether the information was false or would place the person in a false light.

Although this tort is similar to defamation, it is not the same. The report need not be defamatory to be actionable as false light. This type of invasion of privacy tends to occur when a writer condenses or fictionalizes a story, or uses stock footage to illustrate a news story.

False light includes embellishment (the addition of false material to a story, which places someone in a false light), distortion (the arrangement of materials or photographs to give

The law protects an individual from being exploited by others for their exclusive benefit. A person’s entire name need not be used. If the person could reasonably be identified, the misappropriation claim probably will be valid.13

However, incidental references to real people in books, films, plays, musicals or other works, whether fact or fiction, generally are not misappropriations.14 Moreover, use of a photograph to illustrate a newsworthy story is not misappropriation. Even if a photo is used to sell a magazine on a newsstand, courts usually will not consider that use a trade or commercial purpose. The line between news and commercial use is not always clear, however, and even photographs used to illustrate an article may create liability for misappropriation if the article has an overriding commercial purpose.15 Right of publicity

Some states recognize a right of publicity, which protects a celebrity’s commercial interest in the exploitation of his or her name or likeness. In some jurisdictions, this right may descend to heirs or be assigned to others after the person’s