Big Brother Naija – A Legal Analysis
It’s that season again when the entire social media in Nigeria goes into a bit of a frenzy – it’s Big Brother Naija season.
Last year, we wrote a newsletter which broke down the legal issues that come into play with a show like Big Brother Naija. We decided to revisit that post, and update it for this week’s newsletter.
Last year, I explained how I went from hating the show – to being a fan. In summary, I became a fan during the Big Brother Naija lockdown edition (so you can blame Covid19!)
I became a fan of the show not just because it is an interesting social experiment about how people react in a confined environment shut out from all sorts of external influences – how they relate which each other, create alliances, forge relationships etc.; but also, and probably more importantly, I began to think about the show from a legal perspective, thinking through the legal complexities that goes into creating such a show of this magnitude.
Specifically, we will talk about Confidentiality, Privacy, Intellectual Property, Publicity and Commercial rights, Liability issues, and contestant obligations.
About the Big Brother Naija Show
So, for all those who do not know much about the Big Brother Naija show here’s a brief explainer:
Big Brother Naija is a reality television show in which a group of people (housemates) live together in a specially constructed house that is isolated from the outside world, but continuously watched by television cameras. The Housemates vie to be the last person standing so that they can win the prizes Biggie (the voice that controls the show) has to offer.
The housemates are given daily and weekly tasks which are compulsory. These include Head of House challenges and Wagers. These tasks are designed to test Housemates’ teamwork abilities and community spirit. The Housemates’ positions in the house or weekly shopping allowance (to buy food and other essentials) are often at stake and this makes these tasks important.
Housemates are evicted based on a format that is announced by the producers. Housemate are evicted in a weekly show which normally happens on Sunday evenings. The last housemate standing at the end of the show is declared the winner.
Big Brother Naija All Stars premiered on Sunday, July 23, 2023 and there is a grand cash prize of a N120m (this is over double the previous cash amount which was N50m)
Legal Analysis
So below, we will just talk through some of the legal issues that arise for contestants.
Confidentiality
In this season of Big Brother Naija, the format has previous contestants over the last 7 seasons come back as part of an all-star contestant pool to participate in this season. This information about the all-star season was teased by Multichoice (the network which airs the Big Brother Naija show) several weeks ago, and since then, everyone who cares about the show has been speculating about which of the past contestants would be returning.
For anyone who watches the show, you can imagine that the big reveal on the day of the show is a big thing, and so imagine if contestants who were joining the show had already begun publicising this information before it became public knowledge. That would obviously diminish the allure of the show and the wow factor, and so to guard against this – the producers of the show would have made everyone involved in the show sign Confidentiality Agreements or Non-Disclosure Agreements – this would include the contestants, the production staff, any and every person who would conceivably have prior knowledge of the identity of the returning stars.
Breach of a Confidentiality Agreement or NDA would have severe commercial penalties. If the breach was by a contestant, it would likely be included in the contract that this would be the basis for terminating their participation in the show, and in addition would lead to financial liability in the form of damages (which could be considerable!)
Privacy Rights
Closely linked to confidentiality obligations are privacy rights. By joining a show like BBN, the contestants agree to waive their privacy rights. They agree to the fact that they will be videotaped clothed, partially clothed or naked, when they are awake or asleep, and they will agree to wear a microphone at all times.
This is key because as a reality show, the producers must be able to record all the candid moments of the contestants’ daily life. It is also believed that contestants agree to go through medical testing for things like Covid-19, tuberculosis, and sexually transmitted diseases, but accept the risk of having sex with someone who might have HIV or an STD despite the results of those tests.
Contestants must also agree to waive any physician-patient privilege with health care providers, therapists, and others and all producers access to that information. It is unlikely that the producers would use whatever healthcare information obtained as part of the show, but they would need access to such medical information to be able to make informed decisions about whether a contestant should carry on with the show.
Some fans of BBN would remember that in a previous edition of the show, one of the contestants had to leave the show for medical reasons.
Publicity and Commercial Rights
Contestants of the show would also have provided publicity and commercial rights to the producers, which would allow the producers to use their image and likeness for the marketing of the show – generally without limitation. The contestants agree that the producers of the show can record and broadcast interviews which include the contestant’s name, appearance, likeness, photograph etc. 24 hours a day, 7 days a week without limitation.
What this does, is that it provides the legal basis for the producer to broadcast the show about the contestants without the fear that they will be sued for not obtaining the requisite consent or permission.
In some cases, the contestants may also be required to sign agreements that will give the producers an option for future spin-off shows, the idea being the producers don’t want to make a contestant famous, and then the contestant goes on to another network to create a show and commercialise the fame which the Big Brother Naija show created for the contestant
Intellectual Property Rights
The contestants also agree that any intellectual property (IP) that is created during their time in the house shall belong to the producers. Confirming that the producers of the show may broadcast, advertise, publicize, promote or exploit in perpetuity (this means forever) any material created. Frequently, the contestants are asked as part of their daily or weekly tasks or wager events to create things like drama skits, songs, paintings etc.
Normally the IP that is created during these activities would belong to the contestants, however the contestants agree before they enter the house, to assign all IP rights to the producers. The reason this is important is that it prevents any future IP disputes, what the producers do not want is a contestant suing them (and a sponsor) after the show claiming they own the IP to a jingle that was created during the show as part of a task, and therefore should be entitled to compensation or royalty payments.
Liability issues
Before entering the house, contestants agree that they will be subjected to physical, psychological, and emotional strains and pressures both during and after their stay in the house. They also agree to not hold producers liable for intentional or negligent infliction of emotional distress, defamation, or other things, and understand that their own actions and the actions of others may expose them to public ridicule, humiliation or condemnation, and producers can broadcast that.
This release from liability is a big one for the producers of the show because we are seeing now across the world that there could be a lot of potential liability with the nature of reality shows. For instance, it has been reported that between 2010 and 2016, as many as 38 reality TV show contestants around the world have died by suicide, suspected to be linked to the pressures and fall out of their time during the reality shows.
By signing a contract with a waiver or release from liability, the contestant agrees that if they are injured, they assume the risks associated with the dangerous activity they are engaging in, and they cannot sue the producer for injuries which occur during that activity.
Contestant Obligations
· Code of Conduct
Contestants must read the rule book, which they are given before entering the house. However, contestants are also told that those rules can be changed, modified, or amended with or without prior notice. There would be a section in the contract about producers’ ability to change the rules and game at any time, which also says that producers’ decisions are final.
The rule book is like an employee code of conduct in your company, it sets out the dos and don’ts, and the disciplinary procedure. It also sets out what can lead to dismissal – in this case, dismissal is disqualification from the competition. Contestants must not engage in physical violence, non-consensual sexual contact, acts of provocation, and intimidation by threats of physical violence. On past seasons of Big Brother Naija, we have seen contestants disqualified for breaching this rule – Tacha, Erica, Beauty etc.
· Media Rounds and Interviews
Contestants agree to be interviewed immediately following eviction – this is a contractual requirement. They also agree to make themselves available for any publicity that the producers of the show require, for example media rounds, talk shows, news, sponsor events, and appearances. This would also include the reunion show, and contestants agree to do this without requiring any form of compensation, they are obligated to do it.
· Continuing Confidentiality
In addition to the confidentiality obligations before they go into the house. There is a very strict confidentiality requirements after they leave the house as well (which explains why there is not much information out there about the contract terms and the behind-the-scenes process). The contestants agree that they shall not “disclose to any party” anything about the show for a specified number of years and if they do, they must pay damages rumoured to be in the millions of dollars for violating the confidentiality clause.
Conclusion
As you can see, the law plays a very important role in everything around us – even for a show like Big Brother Naija. We hope you have enjoyed this very high-level analysis of the legal issues that are involved.
LAWPADÍ
