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by dragonwriter 2449 days ago
> People can take your picture, but there are longstanding legal privacy protections in place for how that picture can be used

Right of publicity isn't a privacy right; it's more closely related to copyright or trademark than privacy rights.

1 comments

Whatever its legal classification, it's still protective of privacy, and it's still an example of how the idea that you have no legal protection when you're in public isn't accurate.
It's not a matter of classification, but effect: it doesn't stop people from revealing things you don't want revealed, but from reading on your identity as, essentially, a commercial brand.

Depending on the state, even if the state recognizes the right (it's not a federal right, and not all states, IIRC, have any version of it), it also may not protect you at all, since some states only recognize right of publicity for celebrities. (In effect, your identity needs to be a valuable brand before it's protected in some jurisdictions.)