One of the most important defining characteristics of the current information age is free access to publication. This undoubtedly provides us with great advantages. Now freedom of expression seems a materialized fact within everyone's reach. However, this leads to overcrowding and certain unfair acts to the public. Counterfeiting is now more evident when this era of open access coincides with the improvement of photographic editing and retouching applications.
Next I present you a selection of photo montages that spread hoax and fraud (in some cases) in large-scale media.
The myth of the giant skeletons: Around 2002 a graphic artist, IronKite, uploaded his own montage to the Worth 1000 website for artistic purposes. However, this composition would soon reach fame when a wave of digital media published that indeed, human skeleton remains of gigantic dimensions had been discovered. This fake even appeared in the monthly installment of one of the most important Hindu media: The Hindu Voice. It was even stated that it was a discovery made by National Geographic, which to this day continues to receive letters asking about the matter and continues to publicly deny it.
A shark attacks the air force team in Africa? Photography would be creepy if it were real, especially for those who, like me, have a phobia of sharks. However, this is another deception. The montage took place around 2001 to later spread virally via email with a news item that said that a shark had indeed attacked the air force team in no less than Africa. Soon, the most astute would realize that it was a hoax, since in the background of the image appears the very Golden Gate of San Francisco.
The famous tourist of the twin towers: Although we can easily know that this is a hoax, around 2001 after the tragic attack occurred and with emotions running high, more than one came to believe that this photo was real. However, there are two questions that inevitably assail us after analyzing it and warn us of the cruel deception that the protagonist devised with the fantastic Adobe application. And, how is it that such a tourist did not hear the sound of the plane behind him? And best of all… How did that camera survive after taking such a fantastic photograph?
Finally the protagonist got all the attention and fame he was looking for, appearing in the media and becoming a true virus through the network. It took on a great emotional impact in many ways. Those affected by the great catastrophe felt very offended and hurt, however, the most alien and carefree public turned him into a myth of black humor by making several montages of the man in various catastrophes in history.
Missile test: Year 2008. The Iranian army in Tehran tests its missiles and photographs it in order to leave a clear message. However, one of them seems to have not worked and did not even take off. What they did? Logically, in order to show the effectiveness of their weapons, they decided to adulterate the image by replacing the defective missile with another that worked perfectly. Unfortunately for the guards, the photograph with the faulty missile had already been published by an Iranian newspaper and the hoax was soon revealed.
The cat revolutionized social networks: This photograph became a virus around the year 2000, it was even said that the cat that sired this specimen had grown up near a Canadian nuclear laboratory. However, it was not until the following year that the author of the image acknowledged that he had made a digital montage of it with a purpose as innocent as playing a joke on his friends and without any intention of becoming a topic of global conversation. .
The photograph that tried to sell us the motorcycle: For people like me who feel committed to the animal world and the defense of natural environments, this type of manipulation turns out to be a cheek, a daring and of course a crude manipulation for political and economic purposes. The image shows a herd of antelope running freely and in harmony while a train crosses the landscape above them. Surprisingly this image won the award for Lthe most memorable informational image of the year in China until soon after some image analysts discovered certain inconsistencies in the composition, so the photographer Lilu Weiqiang had to admit that it was a montage from two independent photographs. Logically, the train and the infrastructures that it entails, came to affect the ecosystem and the life of the animals that inhabited it.
The tsunami: Once again, a global tragedy was used to create viral content through photo manipulation and social networks. In this case, this image was sent massively by email assuring that it was an island in Thailand shortly before a wave buried it. Shortly after, it was confirmed that it was again a fake and that even this was not the city mentioned, but rather a city in Chile.
The family that became prey: This image was created for a photo editing contest, however, again someone took advantage of its verisimilitude and created a viral campaign also by mail, in order to awaken the horror and give something to talk about. In the email it was said that the image had been taken by the son of the couple who appears in the photo including false statements of those alleged parents. Come on, a strategy more than studied!
Benito Mussolini also succumbed to the power of editing: The Italian fascist leader is the protagonist of the following montage. He appears perched on a horse and boldly displaying a sword. But of course, the presence of that young woman holding the horse would detract from his virility so neither short nor lazy ordered that the woman who held the reins and controlled the horse be removed from the scene. Amazing isn't it?
Doll or person? An insurgent group called Al Mujahedeen published this image around 2005. They claimed that it was an American soldier named John Adams and threatened to behead him if a group of prisoners were not released. They were soon echoed in the press and a public uproar broke out, until an executive of a toy company identified the alleged kidnapped. It was neither more nor less than a doll named Special Command Cody.