The whole “is this dress blue-and-black or gold-and-white” debate took over the internet for a few days. But now a different dress is the subject of a larger, more serious debate.
After photos of Bruce Jenner wearing a dress at his Malibu home were published last week, the 65-year-old star says he is taking legal action against the paparazzi.
According to his rep, these photos were “illegally obtained".
In the pics, Jenner is wearing a black-and-white striped maxi dress and is holding a cigarette. Although the photos are blurry and poor quality, they clearly show that it is indeed Jenner.
The photos were on the front page of the New York Daily News and were broadcasted on a CNN segment called “Caught on Camera: Bruce Jenner’s New Look?”
It is easy to say because he is a celebrity and that by revealing his gender transformation he is asking for publicity.
But the trouble is that the photos are believed to have been snapped from as far as a mile away with a long-shot lens. No matter how public Jenner is, he deserves the right to privacy in his own home.
Likely worrying about the possibility of a lawsuit, the Daily News and CNN removed the images from their websites a few days later.
Jenner’s spokesperson told Us Weekly that "Both Daily News and CNN pulled the photos sold to them by X17 once they found out they were illegally obtained.”
The rep added, “The agency no longer is selling those photos [since] they confirmed they were shot illegally."
"Under California law, photographers can be found liable for invasion of privacy for using telephoto lenses to capture images of people engaged in ‘personal or familial activity.’”
Jenner’s lawyer, Marty Singer, stated, “The photos were clearly unlawfully taken from a very long distance using an enhancement device. Bruce Jenner is going to enforce his right to privacy.”
The threat over legal action has come just four days after Jenner’s bombshell interview with Diane Sawyer.
During the interview, Jenner said, "I am a woman.” He continued with a discussion of his transition from male to female.
Jenner declined to wear a dress for the interview. But he did show off a black dress from his closet that he later wore to dinner with Sawyer.
Bruce even had a sense of humor about his transition: "And the good news, Diane, is you won’t be the tallest girl in the room—isn’t that wonderful?”
He also shared his plans for a new home. He stated, "In the next house I am building a glam room. We’re going to totally rock this place!”
Jenner is slated to film a docuseries about his gender transformation. Let’s hope the show will continue encouraging the positive support Jenner likely needs while in transition.