Professor Benjamin Zipursky, along with University of Virginia School of Law Professor Danielle Keats Citron ’94 and Harvard Law Professor John C.P. Goldberg, wrote an op-ed for CNN about the invasion and violations of individual privacy and dignity, in the wake of the rarity of Vanessa Bryant and co-plaintiff Chris Chester’s recent court victory.
Vanessa Bryant’s recent verdict against the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s and Fire Departments represents a federal jury’s response to immoral and grotesquely offensive conduct by some of their employees.
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What is most disturbing about the court victory for Bryant and Chester, however, is its rarity. Every day, thousands of Americans face similar — or more egregious — privacy violations and find no redress whatsoever in our courts. Far too many people — overwhelmingly women, children, and LGBTQ individuals — suffer grievously when photographs of their naked bodies are shared or posted online, often with identifying information. Due to bigoted stereotypes and attitudes, the circulation of intimate images are particularly costly to women and minorities. The nonconsensual disclosure of such images isn’t just schoolboy fun — any more than the LA officers were just doing their job.
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Congress should amend the Communications Decency Act to help the hundreds of millions of individuals whose privacy and dignity remain under attack, not the thousands of sites profiting from the trafficking of nonconsensual intimate images. Removing the federal immunity will not be enough, however, because the cultural biases and economic incentives shielding nonconsensual image-sharing run deep.”