Celebrities are accustomed to living under the microscope of the public eye, but what about living under the robotically trained eye of a drone?
Unmanned aerial vehicles aren’t only for government ops; these highly advanced pieces of equipment are now being put to use as robo-paparazzi to spy on celebrities.
We can only hope One Direction fans don’t get their hands on any.
Some celebrities, including Martha Stewart, have publicly shown their support of consumer drones for personal use, while others find it troublesome that anyone with a handful of cash and a GoPro can now use their own drone to get the inside scoop.
Though Martha Stewart playing with a drone on her family farm doesn’t pose a great threat, it is this type of easy accessibility that causes worry for celebrity privacy.
The use of consumer drones by paparazzi is receiving backlash from several celebrities and lawmakers. According to Good Morning America, California State Senator, Alex Padilla, is calling for legislation to be passed that would restrict the use of drones and protect the privacy of celebrities.
Kanye West, Selena Gomez, Rihanna, and Miley Cyrus, have all been the subjects of these robotically trained eyes. Miley and Kayne have recently taken to social media and the courtroom to express their discontent.
Miley Cyrus posted on Instagram video footage of a drone hovering above her house with the caption, “Drone Pap wtf.” In a deposition for a lawsuit filed by a disconcerted paparazzi, Kanye expressed his concern for his daughter, North, being followed by drones.
These drone privacy “attacks” aren’t a completely new development, either. In March, Selena Gomez was filmed by 247 Paps.TV who then bragged online they “released the drone” behind the scenes of a video shoot when their on-foot access was restricted.
According to TMZ, AKM-GSI, a major paparazzi agency led by Steven Ginsburg, has been using drones to video celebrity real estate. Ginsburg claimed in an interview with TMZ, “We have the utmost respect for celebs and we stand by our word that we will not distribute any drone video capturing celebrities on public or private property.”
Are drones invading private property if they never step foot on the grass? While celebrities and lawmakers rally to increase legislation, the paparazzi will remain one step ahead or, more accurately, above.
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