# Why do people agree to be made fools of in (inter)national media? (Image releases) **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [April 30, 2007, 9:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-people-agree-to-be-made-fools-of-in-inter-national-media-image-releases/402140 "2007-04-30T09:40:29Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Rigamarole](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/77aa72/32.png) [@Rigamarole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rigamarole)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2007, 9:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-people-agree-to-be-made-fools-of-in-inter-national-media-image-releases/402140/1 "2007-04-30T09:40:29Z")
A recent viewing of the Borat movie has me pondering this - for those who haven’t seen it, much of the movie involves Sacha Cohen playing dumb in order to expose just how foolish and sometimes bigoted a number of apparently unsuspecting American targets are with comedic brilliance. Whenever I see something like this, (Stephen Colbert also leaps prominently to mind) I wonder how they get people to sign the ubiquitous image releases that I understand to be pretty much standard CYA stuff in the TV and film industry. I’ve read a release like this and the language seems like it would be pretty intimidating to someone who is shy about being on national TV - they basically say “I hereby grant Production Company permission to use my image throughout the world, repeatedly, and for all eternity.” I suspect they try to get releases signed before they start filming rather than after, because after some of the ridiculous and stupid shit I’ve seen people saying on camera, I can’t imagine why anyone in their right mind would sign a release granting permission for their folly to be exposed to the entire country and/or world in high-def. In what situations is a release not required? (My understanding is that you can be filmed if you are “in public” without permission, whatever constitutes that, but not “in private”) Do production companies still get sued when people see themselves making an ass of themselves on TV? What are the relevant laws here? ---
**Author:** ![Sapo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ec9cab/32.png) [@Sapo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sapo)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2007, 3:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-people-agree-to-be-made-fools-of-in-inter-national-media-image-releases/402140/2 "2007-04-30T15:32:39Z")
Some people will take any chance at their 15 minutes (seconds) of fame. “Hey guys, I am on TV!” ---
**Author:** ![charizard](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/charizard/32/4166_2.png) [@charizard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/charizard)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2007, 3:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-people-agree-to-be-made-fools-of-in-inter-national-media-image-releases/402140/3 "2007-04-30T15:55:13Z")
For “Borat” in particular, they didn’t know what they were signing up for. They were told that Borat was a Eastern European reporter learning the ways of the US, and were led to believe that the films would be shown only there. This did generate a couple of lawsuits afterward, but they seem to have had the release forms worded in such a way that the suits didn’t get very far. ---
**Author:** ![Zsofia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7bcc69/32.png) [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2007, 4:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-people-agree-to-be-made-fools-of-in-inter-national-media-image-releases/402140/4 "2007-04-30T16:18:39Z")
I often wonder about this when I’m watching Cops. Seriously - you signed the release when you got busted for that drug deal you were making while looking for johns at the gas station with your little toddler daughter in the truck who wasn’t wearing a diaper or underwear or anything? _Really_? Considering you may have to fight for custody or something? ---
**Author:** ![CookingWithGas](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cookingwithgas/32/485_2.png) [@CookingWithGas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CookingWithGas)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2007, 5:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-people-agree-to-be-made-fools-of-in-inter-national-media-image-releases/402140/5 "2007-04-30T17:12:28Z")
[QUOTE=Zsofia] I often wonder about this when I’m watching Cops. Seriously - you signed the release when you got busted for that drug deal you were making while looking for johns at the gas station with your little toddler daughter in the truck who wasn’t wearing a diaper or underwear or anything? _Really_? Considering you may have to fight for custody or something? [/QUOTE] Maybe some of those are considered journalism, where IIRC you don’t need a release. ---
**Author:** ![Colophon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f05b48/32.png) [@Colophon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colophon)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2007, 5:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-people-agree-to-be-made-fools-of-in-inter-national-media-image-releases/402140/6 "2007-04-30T17:28:19Z")
On a related note, how do radio shows get away with broadcasting prank phone calls? I thought the law required you to inform people if the phone call is being recorded? If so, they must edit out that part… _ring ring_ “Hello?” “Hello. I must inform you that this call is being recorded…” “Er, okay…” “Can I speak to Ivor Jerkoff?” ---
**Author:** ![friedo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/8edcca/32.png) [@friedo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/friedo)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2007, 5:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-people-agree-to-be-made-fools-of-in-inter-national-media-image-releases/402140/7 "2007-04-30T17:45:42Z")
[QUOTE=Zsofia] I often wonder about this when I’m watching Cops. Seriously - you signed the release when you got busted for that drug deal you were making while looking for johns at the gas station with your little toddler daughter in the truck who wasn’t wearing a diaper or underwear or anything? _Really_? Considering you may have to fight for custody or something? [/QUOTE] You generally don’t need signed releases if it’s journalistic content, and _COPS_ may qualify. ---
**Author:** ![Zsofia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7bcc69/32.png) [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2007, 6:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-people-agree-to-be-made-fools-of-in-inter-national-media-image-releases/402140/8 "2007-04-30T18:24:29Z")
Then why do they put that big disclaimer on the front that all these people are innocent until proven guilty? Or isn’t that related? ---
**Author:** ![lisacurl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/41988e/32.png) [@lisacurl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lisacurl)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2007, 6:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-people-agree-to-be-made-fools-of-in-inter-national-media-image-releases/402140/9 "2007-04-30T18:34:04Z")
On COPS, they can only show the faces of those persons who sign a release form. The show’s creator estimates that _90%_ sign the form. [cite](http://www.courttv.com/onair/shows/hollywood_heat/articles/0505copsfeat1.html) > [@](#): > > Q: And is that up or down since the show started? > A: It’s more. It may even be 95% now. And I think it’s because “Cops” has become part of pop culture, almost everybody knows the show even if they haven’t watched it. They’ve heard of it or they know what it deals with, or they know the theme song. Over the years it’s become almost de rigueur to be on “Cops” if you happen to get caught. > > Q: That’s why I asked that question. I feel like people would want to do it now, it’s sort of cool. > A: Yeah, they’re very receptive. I mean, we have people say “Get that damn news camera out of my face,” and my crew will say, “We’re not with the news, we’re with ‘Cops’,” and they’ll go “Cool!” > > Q: How do you go about getting people to sign the release? If someone is hesitant, how do you try to talk him or her into it? > A: Our guys say, “Look, why shouldn’t you be on? This really happened, nobody’s saying it didn’t happen, this shows what happened. If you claim that the cops have mistreated you or aren’t being fair to you or whatever the case may be, you have the proof of it. It’s right on tape. Why wouldn’t you want it to be shown?” I mean, they just use psychology along these lines, or try to convince them that there’s nothing to lose. > > Q: And when does this happen? Does it happen at the scene, or do you wait a while? > A: It usually happens at the scene because they’re going from call to call. It’s very difficult to track people down afterwards. > > Q: What if someone’s intoxicated? > A: [With] intoxicated people, we go back to get releases. So that it’s ironclad. > > Q: Are people ever paid to sign the release? > A: No, we don’t pay people for a release, and the reason is we’re a reality show, we’re a documentary. It’s about what’s real. These aren’t actors. We’re not going to pay them to be who they are. > > Q: Do people ever try to get out of the releases? > A: Occasionally. But signing a release is a contract, and contract law is pretty specific. Once you sign it, that’s it, baby. You’re an adult. You know what you’re signing. It’s just like signing a purchase for a car. ---
**Author:** ![Zsofia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7bcc69/32.png) [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2007, 7:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-people-agree-to-be-made-fools-of-in-inter-national-media-image-releases/402140/10 "2007-04-30T19:01:42Z")
Well, you know, here at the library we get a _lot_ of people who come in to look for boyfriends or family or brothers or whatever on the inmate search websites, not because they’re looking for information or anything but because they’re excited that their baby daddy’s online! It’s like their fifteen minutes. ---
**Author:** ![Garfield226](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Garfield226](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Garfield226)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2007, 7:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-people-agree-to-be-made-fools-of-in-inter-national-media-image-releases/402140/11 "2007-04-30T19:07:03Z")
[QUOTE=Colophon] On a related note, how do radio shows get away with broadcasting prank phone calls? I thought the law required you to inform people if the phone call is being recorded? If so, they must edit out that part… _ring ring_ “Hello?” “Hello. I must inform you that this call is being recorded…” “Er, okay…” “Can I speak to Ivor Jerkoff?” [/QUOTE] In the U.S., that depends on the state. For example, I know that in Illinois, both parties are required to know the call is being recorded, but if [this chart](http://www.rcfp.org/taping/) is accurate, that’s the case for surprisingly few states.