The Ethical Limitations of Photo Manipulation

Earl Hopkins

eh032114@ohio.edu

Photo courtesy of Vox

A photo is one of the key elements of journalism. Not only does it increase readership and viewers, but also helps to encapsulate a story’s narrative through a still image. It’s a visual world and, as a result, digital photojournalism has become a staple in today’s media.

However, as organizations continue to rely more on visual-based content, questions of ethics have been raised. One of the biggest concerns is the use of Adobe Photoshop, as the applications usage has blurred the lines between image manipulation and alteration.

The Debate:

The debate between the ethical standards attributed to photography has been split between two groups. The first believes editing photos for the use of publication lacks journalistic integrity; the second suggests refining images is a product of technological advancement and can be used to increase the public's visual draw. But there’s one thing these two groups have agreed upon amid this debate: the decision is dependent on the publication's ethical judgement.

For some, the alteration of images can vary from a wide ethical spectrum. According to nytimes.com Katie White, editor in chief of Cosmopolitan, admits she’s edited colors of clothing and backgrounds. But White insists that she doesn’t alter the bodies of cover models for the publication, which she feels would take away from the image’s natural state.

Though Photoshop and other editing tools have improved the craft of photojournalism, many photographers feel it’s important to capture moments of reality. Writer Sebastian Jacobitz of petapixel.com suggests it’s within photojournalism ethics to avoid editing a scene that deviates from its natural setting. Instead, Jacobitz believes photographers are required to be spectators when documenting the world’s images.

However, Writer Scott Alexander of americanphotomag.com says the processing of images isn’t the question, as many photos need to be altered to be visible for publication. He suggests the distribution of the “RAW” - or original - image file plays a significant part in maintaining photojournalism ethics, as it can be used to determine the level of photo manipulation. Instead, Alexander believes the issues are centered on photographers' limits when using Photoshop and other editing tools.

Bottom Line:

As a result, cases like Steve McCurry, whose overreliance on editing processors affected his photojournalism career, have become a common occurrence on the Internet and social media. Like McCurry, many photojournalists have manipulated photos via Photoshop to capture the “ideal image,” which in many of these cases have proven to be fabricated or staged. 

The sharing of these photos has affected the public’s perception of the media. Again, it’s the responsibility of the photographer to determine the lines of alteration and complete manipulation. Even more so, it’s the responsibility of publications to align specific guidelines for future uses of Photoshop in digital photojournalism. In the absence of these ethical standards, fabricated images will continue to surface on the Internet and social media.