One may remember the Nevermind album cover from 1991, which features a naked baby in the swimming pool. Spencer Elden, who appears on the album cover, is now suing the band Nirvana in the alleged case of child sexual exploitation. Elden, now 30 years old, claims that the photo was taken without his guardian’s consent. According to him, the album cover photo is thoroughly violating the laws of federal child pornography. He is now suing Nirvana, the popular band as implicit in child pornography, for trafficking his picture.
He has filed a lawsuit in the court of Los Angeles. Elden has remarked that he was barely four months old then, and the photo was filmed without his legal guardian’s consent. Furthermore, Elden has said that his parents had not received their release in writing for the concerned photo, and they had not received any payment for the shoot. But, this claim totally contrasts the reports that had surfaced in 2008. Then, according to it, Kirk Weddle, the photographer, had paid Spencer Elden’s father a total sum of $200 for appearing on the album cover in the 15 seconds snap.
According to Elden, they had not particularly consented to the exposure of the child’s genitals in the picture. He remarked that the band had promised to cover it up with a sticker. But they did not keep to their promise as the band released the Nevermind album cover. Spencer Elden said that, since always, both his legal name and identity had been completely surrounded by this exploitation. From his minor years to this day, they have been sharing the same photo on the album cover.
Elden has claimed that the entire team, including those in the band, the record company, and the creative team, have been ‘trafficking’ his image for their profits. As per the lawsuit, Elden is suing two of the surviving band members of Nirvana. The lawsuit is also against the estate of Kurt Cobain. Each of them individually will have to pay a sum that amounts to at least $150,000.
The details in the lawsuit by Elden remarks that the entire conduct has done him great permanent harm. It is thoroughly interfering with his daily life and caused him emotional anguish. It is also tampering with his past and future wages, and there are various losses associated with it.
However, this lawsuit may seem to surprise the public since Elden had recently publicized the recreated version of the adult image of the same photo. He had previously called it a culturally iconic photo. The child pornography lawsuit filed by Spencer Elden is yet to receive any verdict. However, the contrasting standpoints in the case may pose various difficulties in the entire lawsuit.
