Bethenny Frankel Faces a Copyright Lawsuit Over an Instagram Photo
Bethenny Frankel was sued in Manhattan Federal Court Monday by a photographer who alleged that the Real Housewives of New York alum violated copyright laws by sharing his post-disaster photo of Puerto Rico on social media.
The lawsuit claims that New York City photographer, Marcus Santos, registered the photo with the US Copyright Office months before Bethenny posted the shot to her Instagram account, in May 2018. The snap captured a residential area in Puerto Rico after Hurricane Maria hit the island, in 2017. The Skinnygirl mogul used the pic to highlight her relief work in the area after the storm ravaged the landscape.
The former Bravo star captioned the post—“This footage is from last year’s #thisisacrisis movement in #puertorico. #hurricanemaria killed more than 4600 people – that’s more than 70 TIMES the official toll.”
