Is Everything What It Truly Seems Like?

 Aaron Liles

al508219@ohio.edu

Source: Washington Post

Photo Manipulation And Dangers Of Its Use

Photo manipulation has existed for a very long time, however, with the rise of technological software such as Photoshop, almost anyone can have access to photo manipulation tools. Now, photo manipulation is not inherently bad. For example, someone taking a group selfie with their family might want to change the background of the photos they took, so they manipulate it to a background they do like. That in and of itself is not harmful. 

However, there is potentially a lot of harm that can be caused by using photo manipulation for unethical reasons.  In an article posted by the GCF (Goodwill Community Foundation) they make a great point about how journalists often make small changes such as a lighting adjustment to a photo, but it is unethical to change a photo that can mislead the public. Look at the image above for an example of this, on the right is a real photo of Ice Cube and 50 Cent wearing a Big 3 Basketball hat and New York Yankees baseball hat respectively. On the left is a manipulated photo of them wearing Trump 2020 hats. This is where danger can come in, as with the rise of social media, the manipulated photo can spread fast throughout the internet and can cause people to be misled by what is in the photo. 

The Rise Of Deepfakes 

Deepfakes are another manipulation tool that has seen a sharp uptick in usage in recent years. In essence a deepfake is an AI generated tool that can manipulate audio and video. Like photo manipulation, this is not always used for harmful intentions, but the majority of the time it is. The ORF (Observer Research Foundation) states that using deepfakes can create many intentional or unintentional consequences to not just individuals, but society at large as well.  

Source: The Guardian

In the GIF above, Jimmy Fallon is dressed up as Donald Trump, and on the right is a deepfake alteration to make Fallon look exactly like Trump. This shows just how real deepfakes can look, and that they can look like the real thing. This can easily cause people to be misled and lead to consequences.  

The Future Of Photo Manipulation And Deepfakes

Photo manipulation and deepfakes are here to stay in society, so it is important to know how to spot them in order to combat the spread of fake news. This also showcases how critical it is to double check sources when fact-checking information, as it can be easy to fall prey to a really effective photo manipulation or a deepfake.