Surf mag sued over 'humiliating' picture
August 26 2009 at 06:14AM
By Karen Breytenbach
http://www.iol.co.za/index.php?set_id=1&click_id=13&art_id=vn20090826041749330C667980
The mother of a girl who was 12 when she was featured, without consent, in her bikini alongside the words "pure filth" in Zigzag surfing magazine has sued its publishers for R500 000 for defamation and invasion of privacy.
The magazine offered the defence that the girl was not named, her face was not identifiable and the word "filth" was a positive and complimentary term in surfer slang.
The petite blonde girl, who is in Grade 10, took the stand in the Western Cape High Court yesterday. She cried as she recounted the humiliation of seeing herself in Cape St Francis - photographed from behind - next to the words "pure filth"in Zigzag magazine in 2006.
The girl's mother, who also testified, said the civil suit was "not about money, but about my daughter's dignity, morals, principles and standards". She said she would not have brought the claim if the magazine had apologised.
Zigzag editor Will Bendix was also called to the stand to explain why he had used the picture.
The magazine is published in Durban, but is owned by Touchline, which is based in Cape Town, the court's jurisdiction. The picture was taken by freelance photographer Al Nicoll, and was also featured in a Zigzag promotion on SuperSport.
In questioning by her counsel, Louise Buikman, the girl said within days the news had spread to several schools in her home province, the Eastern Cape. Her picture was put up in a boys' high school and soon she was teased on the chat application MXit as being a "porn star" or "slut".
In cross-examination by Eduard Fagan SC, the girl said she recognised herself by her body shape, her bikini and her hair elastic. She conceded her face was not visible.
She also conceded that surfers used the words "filth", "filthy" or "sick" to describe good waves, but said none she knew had ever heard of "filth" used in a human context.
The girl's mother said when she opened the magazine she cried, because her 12-year-old's "innocence had been taken from her". The mother said she recognised her daughter by her body shape, and said others could too, as the surfing and local communities were close-knit.
Bendix said he did not bother to find out who the girl in the picture was since she was indistinguishable, but had he known she was 12 he probably would not have printed it.
Bendix conceded that readers who did not know surfer slang could have negatively interpreted the picture in the context it was used.
He said he would have printed an apology but the legal situation had been dealt with by his former managing editor.
