Given the growing testimonies and complaints against public figures, the entertainment industry, for example, is paying more and more attention to the working relationship and public image we have with an artist when accused of sexual offenses, violence, aggression. , discrimination, comments or racist and hateful situations.
The lawyer and specialist, José Antonio Ávalos Gutiérrez, a professor at the Pan American University, explains different situations in which public figures and companies (television, radio, film, digital platforms and talent agencies) act when someone from their distribution or from the work team is immersed in a complaint both on social networks until it reaches the court.
In the case of public figures, from the perspective of work, there is the section on “Special jobs”, where there are specific rules of operation, but when it comes to harassment, harassment or any other such reason, obviously follows the same rule. – applied – to other workers – in any other category – which is a cause of termination of employment, which in this case the producer or television station may use to conclude an employment relationship with a public person. ‘ .
As a result of the #MeToo movement in Hollywood, most male actors, singers, producers and directors have been accused and denounced by relatives, romantic partners, union colleagues or certain projects and fans, for example, who have made public situations of physical, sexual, emotional aggression and abuse of power, to such an extent that characters like Harvey Weinstein have been shut down and completely disconnected from the active projects of the big content creation companies.
“There are two perspectives, From the legal side of Mexico, you are innocent until proven otherwise. In social networks I can say anything about myself or about any public person and, from this perspective only legal, I am innocent until proven otherwise. From the social, media and commercial side to a television It’s a lot to promote a work of a person who is supposed to be dealing with something bad, because people’s perception is that the television station encourages the support of someone who has a behavior that is not correct from a social point of view ”.
How do you proceed?
In recent years, the Mexican entertainment industry has turned its attention to its own courage, seeing the names and faces of popular public figures brought to social and legal processes with enough impact to truncate a career or project in their lives.
Figures like youtuber Ricardo González (Rix) or Yoseline Hoffman (YosStop), presenter Andres Roemer, actors such as Eleazar Gomez, Ricardo Crespo, and recently Gonzalo Peña, suspended from the soap opera “What’s with my family?” (from producer Juan Osorio), have been reported to the authorities for alleged sexual offenses, ranging from equivalent rape, abuse of power, dissemination / storage of unauthorized content and / or complicity, for example, which has led to various platforms, companies and projects to terminate or suspend employment and public relations, as was the case with José Manuel “Chumel” Torres, who stemmed from a controversy over comments considered racist and discriminatory, his “Chumel con Chumel” program of on HBO Latin America was suspended by television.
“Is it advisable to stop the production of a project? The answer is that it depends, because you have to know the contract to know what the television station is committed to and the economic impact of stopping a production for a publication – for example – on social media.
The specialist points out that the reasons for termination, in order to dismiss a worker, are in the labor legislation of 1970, but in the case of public figures and their contractors, such as television stations, sometimes the party does not have the same weight in front of the public image on which both parties represent to each other and in front of the target audience.
“From a legal perspective, a public person who considers that the dismissal is unfair, that he should not have dismissed or suspended his project, obviously has an action or lawsuit against television who decided (…) the public person has the right before the labor courts to say that he has been unjustifiably dismissed for an alleged publication of an alleged conduct which he has committed but which is not accredited. “
It is added that when the media watches and pays more attention to the case of a famous person, they are also responsible for the information that is shared and its origin and source, both for the victim and the accused, thus avoiding future lawsuits for defamation or non-pecuniary damage.
Use of social networks
Lawyer José Antonio Ávalos Gutiérrez states that reporting on social networks, before a complaint to the appropriate authorities, can trigger various factors that, on the one hand, provide a greater voice, a massive network of support and tools to the victim and that the authorities participate or react quickly to the case, but may offer the same possibilities to the accused in the event of non-pecuniary damage when the alleged facts cannot be proved.
“In social networks, if I publish something against someone, obviously there is moral damage for both the victim and the public person. If the public person manages to prove that there has never been an injury, that he has never had such behavior that he denounces, if during the trial it is found that it is not true that there was a subject of abuse, obviously there is a moral damage to the public figure and is able to demand moral damages from anyone who exposed him on social networks and there should be reparation for the damage ”.
He points out that when an act of abuse goes public and there are public figures involved and the media, both the victim and the accused, cases tend to be processed more quickly in front of the media involved: “The person who is famous has a greater social impact on people and also the authorities are more profitable or more profitable to make it known that they are doing their job well.”
The accessibility and immediacy with which you can jump to fame through digital platforms also involves new rules of the game for the person who aspires to be a public figure, because, although there is no international law governing the dynamics of the Internet, each platform begins to strengthen the criteria of its content to avoid involvement with reported users if there are no direct employment contracts or obligations.
Keep that in mind
If you feel in danger and / or have been sexually or sexually assaulted and want to report, you can seek legal advice, psychological assistance, medical services and social assistance, for example, at the Women’s Justice Center, located on Álvaro Alcázar Street. 5869, Colonia Jardines Alcalde and calling 3030-5450. Facebook: Jalisco Women’s Justice Center and in fiscalia.jalisco.gob.mx
