Because visual messages are products of our sense of sight, pictures are highly emotional objects that have long-lasting staying power within the grayest regions of our brain. The reason this issue is of such vital importance is the fact that history has shown that stereotyping leads to scapegoating that leads to discrimination that leads to segregation that leads to physical abuse that leads to state-sponsored genocide. The media provide many messages and one of the most prevalent messages is that we are the media. What the law says Although there is little in case law concerned with visual stereotyping, an argument can be made that the false light branch of privacy law may be an outlet for those who feel they have been harmed by a negative stereotype. However, the Amendment is not an absolute immunization-the courts are.
Civil courts hear complaints from individuals regarding violations of privacy.
The result can be a tort-a civil wrong against another that results in injury. For this discussion, the false light provision is the most appropriate. For example, in Maryland a false light claim was lodged after a photograph was published of a man sitting in a backyard that was used to illustrate an article about murders, drug abuses, and economic hardships of teenagers in Baltimore. Although false light is invoked the fewest times in the cases reviewed for the publication, it is nevertheless an area of law that can result in a judgment for an individual pictured as an unflattering stereotype. The issues Most media experts come up with several reasons why the media stereotype-advertisers that demand quickly interpreted shortcut pictures, lazy or highly pressured reporters that don't take or have the time to explore issues within their multifaceted and complex contexts, few members of diverse cultural groups working as photographers, reporters, editors, or publishers in an organization, the presumed, conditioned expectations of readers and viewers to only accept images of diverse members within a limited range of content categories, and regrettably, and often denied, culturism.