I watch Cops pretty much every day. I’ve seen every episode at least once. Most of the time, the suspect is shown in his full glory, but every now and then, the face is obscured so as to thwart recognition.
I used to just assume that if the person was convicted of anything stemming from that arrest, the image was free to use.
But now I want to know for sure. Do those arrested on the show have to sign a waiver? Do they get any monetary gain if they’re innocent but allow their face to be used?
The ones obscured have not signed a waiver. Even if it is true that once they’re convicted they’re free to be broadcast, I imagine to cover all their bases they stick by contracts anyway.
Some who haven’t signed I have imagined are just hard to track down, rather than have refused, though I’m sure there are many refusals too.
There’s also the “innocent until proven guilty” part - if their case hasn’t come to trial by the time the show is produced and released, they may not be able to show the person’s face or otherwise disclose their identity.
Not really. News programs are free to show an arrested person being led handcuffed into a police car, or at an arraignment hearing. You see it all the time.
The big difference is this: Cops is not a news program. It is a reality-based entertainment program. As an entertainment program, it must have the permission of all the people shown on screen (other than in crowds or passersby). Believe it or not, the producers of Cops ask all involved for permission to use their images, in return for a standard performer’s fee. All of the non-blurred people you see on Cops — police officers, perpetrators, victims, family members — have signed such an agreement (although in most jurisdictions the cops are not allowed to take the money).