What is an unauthorized biography? The simple and seemingly obvious answer is: an unauthorized biography is a biography written by someone who does not have permission and/or cooperation from the subject to write it. There’s a bit more to it, however.
The lack of permission or cooperation from the subject—usually a celebrity or public figure—doesn’t stop writers from writing unauthorized biographies, the bookstore shelves are full of them. As long as the facts are straight, the depiction accurate, the book doesn’t even need to clearly state that it is “unauthorized.”
That said, there must be nothing included or implied that would lead readers to believe that the biography was written with the subject’s cooperation, or even his or her “blessing.” According to The Publishing Law Center (intellectual property experts), that’s not the only thing the potential biographer must pay close attention to.
Several Factors to Consider for Authors of Unauthorized Biographies
Besides appropriate representation (or, at least, lack of misrepresentation) and complete accuracy, the author must see to it that the unauthorized biography does not invade the subject’s right of privacy, misappropriate his or her right of publicity, infringe copyright protected material, engage in unfair competition, or violate a breach of confidence with the subject.
Each of the aforementioned are potential complications for an author, so why do so many unauthorized bios still see the light of day? Why would an author risk a libel suit (or any number of other types of legal actions against them)?
The Law Favors Protecting First Amendment Rights, the Right to Free Speech
One answer may lie in the fact that courts maintain a duty to protect the First Amendment right to free speech, in an effort to not set precedents that might ultimately lead to all variety rights infringements. This, combined with the fact that public figures have become resigned to the fact that their often-highly-scrutinized private lives are more public than the average citizen, and the “honest” biographer can proceed with caution, but with the law on their side.
In other words, when the subject is “famous,” the rules are different, and those rules actually favor the writer, as long as he or she is passing on honest and truthful information that cannot be considered libelous (damaging), even if it might be “embarrassing” for the subject.
Unauthorized Biographies Can Be a Selling Point
Oddly enough, in recent years, the unauthorized biography has become something of a selling tool in certain markets. When the subject is already particularly controversial, or the author has become known as questionable journalist, it is not unheard for a book to proudly proclaim its “unauthorized!” heritage, applying the adage that “any publicity is good publicity.”
Those few aside, however, the question is sometimes asked: Are unauthorized biographies worth reading? Of course, there are several considerations here, but in general, many unauthorized biographies are high quality, well-written books, and readers might be surprised to know just how many they’ve read without knowing it, or questioning their “authorization.”
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