Anti-paparazzi bill progresses in Hawaii

An anti-paparazzi bill passed its first hurdle in an Hawaii Senate committee. The Judiciary Committee approved a bill that would allow celebrities to sue anyone for invasion of privacy for photographing them on private property or engaging in personal or family activities. Use of telephoto lenses to view people on private property is also banned. Opponents of the bill said it was too vague and violated photographers’ First Amendment rights. (The Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press, February 13, 2013, by Lilly Chapa)

Singer Steven Tyler initiated the bill and testified before the committee saying that enduring the paparazzi in public was “part of the deal-lo,” “but when I’m in my own home and I’m taking a shower or changing clothes or eating or spending Christmas with my children, and I see paparazzi a mile away, shooting at me with lenses this long, and then seeing that very picture in People magazine, you know, it hurts…That’s what they do, they are just constantly taking from us.”

Britney Spears and other celebrities sent a statement to the committee saying that if the bill passed, more celebrities would find Hawaii an attractive destination which would be a boon to the local economy. (AceShowBiz, February 9, 2013) -db