Hunter Biden’s Latest Legal Allegation Could Be ‘Very Bad’ for American Journalism, Analysts Say
Jammed in the letter Hunter Biden’s lawyers sent to Fox News, which led to the company pulling a documentary, is a legal allegation that has serious implications for American journalism, analysts told the Daily Caller.
Biden’s lawyers accused Fox of unlawfully exploiting his name, image and likeness (NIL) and violating revenge porn laws. The first son’s legal team also argued that certain claims made by former FBI confidential human source (CHS) Alexander Smirnov, which Fox used in their reporting, had been “debunked.” Aaron Terr, Director of Public Advocacy for the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE), told the Daily Caller that if the revenge porn allegations were to succeed, “that would be a very bad ruling for a free press.”
“The media has the first amendment right to publish even illegally obtained information as long as they didn’t participate in the illegal conduct itself. So, of course, the government can punish the hacker. But the First Amendment broadly protects the right of the press to report on information in the public interest, or that’s already been made publicly available, even if some uninvolved party was responsible or participated in some illegal activity that resulted in the information becoming public,” Terr said.
Biden’s lawyers demanded the network remove their documentary, “The Trial of Hunter Biden,” from their Fox Nation streaming platform. The Biden team asserts the usage of the pictures violates his privacy rights under New York Civil Rights Law and that the series exploits his NIL.
“Here, without Mr. Biden’s consent, Fox Nation produced and aired an entirely fictional six-part ‘mock trial,’” Biden’s lawyers wrote. They argue that Fox was not reporting on a newsworthy event, but rather “sought to ‘commercialize Mr. Biden’s personality through a form of treatment distinct from the dissemination of news or information.’” (Read more from “Hunter Biden’s Latest Legal Allegation Could Be ‘Very Bad’ for American Journalism, Analysts Say” HERE)
