Mass Media Law Clay Calvert 21e

Mass Media Law Clay Calvert 21e

Chapter 07
Invasion of Privacy: Appropriation and Intrusion

Multiple Choice Questions

1. Which of the following is NOT an accurate statement about the right of publicity?
A. In some states, the right can be passed on to heirs.
B. The plaintiff in a right of publicity suit can claim monetary loss.
C. It is based on an individual’s right to profit from his or her own identity.
D. All of the answers are correct.

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2. Transformative use in a right of publicity case refers to
A. a use that transforms the plaintiff’s likeness into something the defendant can sell.
B. a use that is not a literal depiction of the plaintiff’s likeness but that adds creative elements.
C. the judicial transformation of an appropriation claim into a right to publicity claim.
D. a use that takes a person who is a celebrity in one field and transforms that celebrity to another field; like making a musician into a TV actor.

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3. One of the most important scholarly articles contributing to the legal recognition of a right to privacy in the United States was published in 1890 in the Harvard Law Review and was co-authored by
A. Warren and Brandeis.
B. Calvert, Kozlowski, and Silver.
C. Holmes and Smithfield.
D. Alito and Sotomayor.

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4. A person whose photo is taken without her permission while she is walking down a public sidewalk cannot successfully sue for public disclosure of private facts but could successfully sue for
A. false light invasion of privacy.
B. trespassing.
C. intrusion.
D. none of the answers is correct.

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5. The intrusion tort differs from other rights to privacy torts (appropriation, public disclosure of private facts, and false light) because
A. publication of information is not required to establish a legitimate cause of action for intrusion.
B. intrusion is recognized in only a minority of the states in the nation.
C. while litigation in the other three tort areas has grown sharply in the past two decades, the number of intrusion cases has dropped sharply.
D. only celebrities or well-known individuals can successfully sue for intrusion.

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6. The Booth rule is applicable in which of the four varieties of invasion of privacy?
A. appropriation
B. intrusion
C. private facts
D. false light

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7. In order to sue for publication of private facts, the plaintiff must demonstrate the revelation of the private facts were:
A. highly offensive to the plaintiff.
B. highly offensive to a reasonable person.
C. highly offensive to the average person.
D. highly offensive to the judge.

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8. A woman is filmed swimming in a backyard swimming pool in a revealing bikini. When determining if she can sue, the court would consider
A. if the woman had a reasonable expectation of privacy.
B. if the woman could be easily observed from the surrounding area such as a public sidewalk.
C. the size, location, and layout of the fence around the backyard.
D. all of the answers are correct.

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9. For the purposes of an appropriation suit, which of the following is not likely to be considered a commercial use?
A. a newsletter for a non-profit organization describing a recent fundraising speech given by a famous celebrity
B. a picture of the Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s face printed on her personal coffee mug
C. a commercial run at 8:00 p.m. for a broadcast news’ 10:00 p.m. story on the opening of a local water park
D. None of the above are likely to be considered a commercial use.

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10. When Lindsay Lohan sued Rockstar Video games over a character who appeared in “Grand Theft Auto V” she lost the case because the court ruled:
A. the use of her image was not highly offensive.
B. the use of her image was transformative.
C. the character was not based on Lohan’s “likeness.”
D. video games were not a commercial use.

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Short Answer Questions

11. Discuss briefly whether American courts consider it possible for a well-known person to pass on his or her right of publicity to an heir.
Courts in a few states have ruled that it is impossible to pass on such a right, but these states are clearly in the minority. Other states have said that the right may be passed on only if the individual tried to exploit this right before he or she died. More commonly, the courts and legislatures in most states have decided that such a right may be passed on to an heir under any circumstance. Many times, this is protected by the state statutory law.

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12. What are the circumstances in which written consent may not suffice as a defense in an appropriation case?
(1) If the individual who gave consent could not legally give consent because, for example, he or she was underage. (2) If considerable time passed between when the consent was given and when the name or likeness was used for advertising or trade purposes. (3) If the photograph of the individual was substantially altered before publication, so it was not really the same photograph that the plaintiff consented to have used.

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True / False Questions

13. Under the appropriation law, a celebrity’s likeness includes much more than his or her name or face.
TRUE

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14. The use of a name or likeness in any publication sold to a reader for a profit is considered an appropriation.
FALSE

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15. A corporation enjoys the same personal right of privacy as a living person.
FALSE

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16. The publication of information that has been obtained through an illegal intrusion is not considered an invasion of privacy if the reporter or editor had nothing to do with the intrusion.
TRUE

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17. You do not have a reasonable expectation of privacy in a public place even if you wear revealing clothing or you are in a car accident.
TRUE

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18. Persons who send e-mail messages and participate in chat rooms on the Internet do not have a reasonable expectation of privacy under the law.
TRUE

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19. The use of the likeness of a celebrity on a shirt, trading cards, or other such items is always regarded as an appropriation.
FALSE

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20. The defense of newsworthiness in a privacy lawsuit extends to stories about important governmental, economic, foreign policy, or political issues, but it does not extend to stories about social or cultural issues.
FALSE

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21. An employee who uses a company computer has a reasonable expectation of privacy with regard to the e-mails he or she sent or received.
FALSE

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22. It is not an invasion of privacy to record a conversation between two people if the conversation takes place in a public place where there is not a reasonable expectation of privacy.
TRUE

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23. The First Amendment prohibits appropriation lawsuits for plays, films, books, and television programs even if they make money.
TRUE

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