San Miguel Art magazine/ San+Miguel+Art+magazine%2FOctober+ | Page 21

and Jane Fonda sharing
a stage at a Vietnam anti-
war protest. The two were
photographed at separate
occasions and stitched
together from photos taken
almost a year apart.
Images do not have to be as
dramatically doctored as the
Kerry/Fonda photo but can
be subtle as that taken of
Hillary Clinton as she slips
walking into a facility in SC;
the implication that she is of ill
health. In this regard perhaps
more of an ethical issue than
manipulation.
Perhaps we can forgive the
artistic transgressions of a
touched-up profile, slenderized
torso, or any of those features
manipulated to add impact to
supermarket magazine covers,
but in an age where much of
our information comes from the
Internet; social media, twitter
feeds, Facebook (a private
corporation which has become
a dominant source of public
information), how predictable
are we from weeding out
the “Fake” from the “Real”,
significantly in photojournalism
where the majority of
people get their information
electronically?
It is proven that images
have a greater impact on the
individual than the written
word, and yes, there is a
current movement underway
to develop AI (artificial
intelligence) algorithms than
can distinguish Fake News/
Images; but a system that can
detect, fact-check, identify, and
parse such information reliably
is skeptical at best. Although
image fakery can often be
detected through professional
means, as individuals, we are
not prepared to be experts in
digital forensics.
Altered imagery will continue
to exist regardless of the
limitation imposed upon it, or
the ability to detect it; in fact,
with technical advancements,
it will become even more
proliferate — after all, in our
world, sensationalism receives
a higher value than fact. Fake
images are the pedestal on
which Fake News stands.
So, before you click WOW
on your Facebook page,
take a look at this impressive
image of the flooding of the
Houston Airport that went viral
during Hurricane Harvey. The
image was created by digital
artist Nickolay Lamm as part
of a series depicting what
LaGuardia Airport could look
like after 25’ of sea level rise.
Consider what you a seeing,
be suspicious, consider the
source, and be prepared to
doubt.