On November 6, 2012, the mother of Isabella Barrett (a child who appeared on TLC’s child beauty pageant television show ‘Toddlers & Tiaras’) settled a libel lawsuit filed against TMZ and the Daily Mall, two media outlets who allegedly “sexualized” the child’s performance at a January charity event in several news articles. The complaint, which originally sought $10 million from each of the defendants, accused the media outlets of portraying Isabelle in a manner that was “perceived sexually, erotically and pornographically by the readership of the articles [placing her] in serious physical danger, attracting the attention of others who would seek to sexualize a child.”
In addition to approving the undisclosed settlement amount, New York Supreme Court Judge Joan M. Kenney ordered TMZ and the Daily Mall to retract the articles published about the girl which asserted that Isabella’s mother had pushed the young girl to dance “provocatively” to the song “Sexy and I Know It” at the New York City night club Libation. However, Barrett’s mother insisted that while Isabella had attended a charity event at the venue, the child was simply singing along with the DJ while the songs were being played. Barrett’s attorney, Andrew Miltenberg, expressed satisfaction with the settlement, noting that Isabella could now concentrate on her performance in her new television show.