I’ve just been reading a very interesting news article that does raise a few questions about the increased use of spontaneous content in social and the apparent lack of permission that is being sought by creators before publishing content. The article that has highlighted some concerns for me is from news.com.au and can be accessed here (valid as at 14 July 2022).
In reading the article earlier, it highlights whether it is a breach of someones privacy to involve them in social media content without their permission.
The scenario discussed this article involves an individual filmed being asked to hold some flowers whilst the “social media influencer” put on their jacket, and then proceed to walk away and leave the flowers behind with a person who has absolutely no idea about what just happened. The idea is that it’s meant to surprise and delight, make the person feel special and loved.
As I continued reading the article, I was a little bit startled to hear that the management team for this individual placed the onus on the anonymous unwilling participant to reach out to them to request that it not be used. This goes against the simple premise of permission; the individual has not agreed to be involved so why should the onus be on them to ask for the content to be removed or to not even go live in the first place? The other concerning factor is, that by the time the individual is alerted to footage of them being used, it’s too late, the video has already reached enough people to circulate back. Without knowing individual circumstances, the stress of knowing that millions of people might view the content, see how you look and feel on that day, which may not be a true representation of yourself (everyone has bad days) can cause a lot of mental anguish on people. In this story, the unwilling participant, Maree, discusses how another newspaper, The Daily Mail, painted a picture of her being a lonely and sad individual, which made her feel uncomfortable. This feeds into the breach of privacy going even further beyond a simple 2 minute recording and highlights even more the importance of seeking permission and the impact on the mental health and social conscious of the person being filmed. These content creators specifically seek out individuals who they feel fit a certain category to help achieve the engagement that they want, they are using the content to portray a particular storyline, whether it honestly reflects the individuals involved or not.
Spontaneous generation of content is becoming a big part of social channels, especially Tik Tok, and many anonymous and unwilling participants are being filmed and added to social channels without their permission.
As a business, talent and content permission should not be disregarded. The surprise factor that a lot of social content is relying upon means that individuals can’t be alerted to what is happening prior to the event, but a courteous return to the situation to clearly detail intention and request permission should always happen. This not only ensures that there is no negativity to what you are trying to do but also protect you from any potential legal and financial repercussions. The responsibility in doing this relies on the content creator, not the individual being filmed.
The rise of Tik Tok challenges and followers of things such as Random Acts of Kindness has created an increase in, what I believe, to be a breach of individual privacy. Having worked in this industry for over 20 years, ensuring that people who were even slightly visible in creative always provided permission was crucial. If we didn’t get that permission then we couldn’t use the content. Talent release forms were always available and signed, whether paid or unpaid talent. If broadcasting, people were advised of the footage intent and from there they had the choice to be involved or not. The rule was that if someone’s face was visible, they were considered talent and therefore permission needed to be provided.
I would strongly encourage all businesses, or individuals, intending to create content that uses people to consider the implications of the use of their footage and take the right steps to protect their privacy. Talent release forms are a type of simple contractual agreement that an individual signs which simply states their name, date of the filming and the purpose of which they have agreed for their image to be used. They don’t need to be created by a legal firm and are just an agreement between the individual and business who is conducting the filming. By agreeing to this, the individual is signing over their rights to state a claim to the images, request for payment / compensation and ensures that the business has a right to use them.
Not doing this opens any business up to backlash, rightly or wrongly. I like the concept around Random Act of Kindness, but honestly don’t feel that the process that is being followed by the individuals managing this is following what would be seen as simple legally accurate process. In this instance, the individual is within their rights to be upset and to request for the images to be removed or more. They were not willing participants and were just going about their day and firmly believe that their own individual reputation and brand has been tainted because of the incidence.
In summary, if you are using talent make sure that they are aware, whether before or after the development of the content. If they do not want to be involved, then you need to respect this and either come to an agreement on the boundaries of what can be used and not used. Extra time for filming an editing is certainly going to protect your brand or business from the long term affects of not taking the right steps and respecting people.
Good Luck
The Marketing Elf
©July 2022
The Marketing Elf 