Philip Lee, General Secretary WACC–
Fake news and images are high on the global communications agenda. In response, WACC and its ecumenical partners are promoting short sessions called “Just Digital” to help people navigate the online world. A further three webinars cover “AI, You, and Your Organization”. These resources are available here.
AI manipulated photos are rife in the digital landscape, raising the old question “What is truth?”. Fake news and disinformation have long been familiar. But now, digitally manipulated images are being used to reinforce misperceptions or downright lies and to sway public opinion.
American critic Susan Sontag once observed, “Something we hear about, but doubt, seems proven when we’re shown a photograph of it… A photograph passes for incontrovertible proof that a given thing happened. The picture may distort; but there is always a presumption that something exists, or did exist, which is like what’s in the picture.”
Today, smart phones, digital technologies, and AI have challenged the notion of the incontrovertible proof of a photo. We all remember the notorious AI-generated image of Pope Francis wearing a Balenciaga puffer jacket. Unthinking acceptance of it was doubtless reinforced by the real image of his predecessor Pope Benedict wearing red shoes.
From camera stabilization to advanced, AI-driven image filters and other tools, it has never been easier to create high-quality images using basic consumer hardware. Yet, digital editing for public consumption is frowned upon, as the UK’s Princess of Wales discovered when a family photo later released to the media was found to have been altered.
Behind such controversies are the integrity and credibility of news. As Volker Türk, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, recently pointed out, “We need independent, ethical and quality journalism perhaps now more than ever. On the climate crisis – and on all crises – journalists serve as the ultimate allies in human rights. Because in their pursuit of facts, evidence and accountability, we have one of our best hopes to build societies based on truth and trust.”
That will only happen when what people read, hear, and see in the news and on social media is genuinely credible. Rebuilding trust in the media and tackling disinformation are, therefore, an essential part of WACC’s struggle for a democratic and just world.