‘Non-consensual porn’, Hulk Hogan, and a crucial verdict for privacy in the digital age

It’s hard to think of a case with details more spectacular: A videotape featuring wrestling star Hulk Hogan having sex in a canopy bed with the young wife of a good friend — a man whose legal name is Bubba the Love Sponge Clem.

Hogan, whose real name is Terry Bollea, sued the website that published portions of the tape, the New York-based gossip site Gawker.com. A Florida jury deliberated just six hours before ruling in Bollea’s favor and awarding him US$115 million in damages.

The case also raises crucial issues about privacy in the age of Internet phenomena such as revenge porn.

“People are thinking a little bit more about the concept of what is newsworthy, because what’s changed is the concept of who a public figure is,” said Mary Anne Franks, a professor at the University of Miami School of Law and the legislative and tech policy director of the nonprofit Cyber Civil Rights Initiative.

“Society can be contemptuous toward a celebrity because they’re a celebrity, and people think that a celebrity can deal with this,” Franks said. “But nowadays you can be turned into a public figure because of a sex tape that is released of you.”

The verdict’s legal scope is, for now, limited. Friday’s decision emerged from a jury trial in a district court, which means it doesn’t set precedent.