The Research Of Voluntary Public Figures' Right Of Personality

The voluntary type of public figure is a new term appeared in the Yang Lijuan sue Southern Weekend case which is heard by the Guangzhou Intermediate People's Court, and the new term is very significant. The voluntary type of public figures are those people who subjectively hope or indulge themselves to be the voluntary type of public figure, and objectively become the voluntary type of public figures , including authors, directors, singers, actors and sports stars and so on. This group of people is different with involuntary public figures, and they have their own features, such as sociality, voluntary and morality and so on, all those differences decide that we should treat the voluntary type of public figures and the involuntary type of public figures differently. The identification of the voluntary type of public figure has certain criterion, which identified whether someone is pertain to the voluntary type of public figure mainly from subjective aspect and objective aspect. The voluntary type of public figures is a specific social group which has higher popularity and is focus of mass media and interest of general public, and they often conflict with the public interest, so, when we in the face of the conflicts of those rights, our judicial practice more and more tends to protect the public interest, public right to know and freedom of the press. This paper has classified right of personality of the voluntary type of public figure and has discussed them separately, and has studied the necessity of restriction to right of personality of the voluntary type of public figure, and has pointed out some fundamental principles of restriction for right of personality of the voluntary type of public figure, and confirmed that the restriction scope are only limited to right of privacy, right of reputation, right of portraiture and right of name, and we can only restrict right of personality of the voluntary type of public figure when those above four rights are involve the public interest and the interests of general public. The restriction to right of personality of the voluntary type of public figure does not mean they don not have right of personality, and does not mean their right of personality is not protected by law, and this paper has stated that protection for right of personality of this social group from several aspects, first has analyzed it from protection scope and has proposed that the individual data and private space of the voluntary type of public figure should be protected by law, then has stated separately from right or privacy, right of reputation, right of portraiture and right of name. By the end of this paper I have raised some questions about handling the voluntary type of public figure in our country and have expressed some my own opinions...