Static
Size of company is irrelevant. An individual can be taken to court over copyright or defamation matters.
You are also completely wrong, I believe, about the protection of a pilot's career. I can think of no other career, where career progression is more dependent upon image. If a pilot is seen to be unprofessional, he will not get the jobs he wants. Airlines cannot be criticised for this, as they live or die by image. In an industry delivering a service that is as widely feared as flying, and where accidents have such an impact that they are publicised so widely the image of safety and professionalism must be maintained at all cost. Hence the bans on drinking in uniform, for example.