News Station Blames Photoshop for ‘Sexist’ Edit of Female Politician in Australia

[John Waller]

https://petapixel.com/2024/01/31/news-director-blames-photoshop-for-sexist-edit-of-female-politician...

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2024-02-01/georgie-purcell-ai-image-nine-news-apology-digital-ethics/103...

This issue caused a stir in our media outlets yesterday.

The digitally altered image of Victorian Animal Justice Party MP Georgie Purcell used to introduce a story on Victorian duck hunting saw the white dress she was wearing in the original photo swapped for a top exposing her midriff.

"Note the enlarged bust and outfit to be made more revealing. Can't imagine this happening to a male MP," she tweeted.

Nine News has told the ABC (Australian media outlet) the alteration to Ms Purcell's midriff occurred when using Adobe Photoshop's "generative expand" tool.

The tool allows users to make an image bigger — the program uses AI to make assumptions or guesses about how that image might be best filled out with new material.

When that image was dragged downwards using the expand tool, the generated image exposing her midriff was created, according to Nine.

This was the image later incorporated into a graphic used in the network's coverage of debate over the future of duck hunting in Victoria.

Photoshop AI or mischievous media? Either way an editor must have approved it to go live. Nine News has spent the last 24 hours apologising for it.

"Adobe released a statement saying edits to the image in question "would have required human intervention and approval"."

[Abambo]

Hm, I will use that as an analogy, when getting a speed ticket. I will blame that on the car and the car manufacturer. 😵‍💫

[Leslie Moak Murray]

Oh for petes sake I was expecting something more severe than that!  Still, it's disturbing. Also funny that a woman with tattoo sleeves is worried about how people perceive her. HAH     I hate the 21st century

-edit typo

[Abambo]

If she would have been like that, it would not have been disturbing at all. And the news channel explanation is hilarious. It wasn't me, it was the tool I used…!

[John Waller]

And the news channel explanation is hilarious. It wasn't me, it was the tool I used…!

Yes, although I suspect it was a choice between a dubious explanation or leave themselves open to a lawsuit. The politician in question is a renowned activist.

Must have required some quick-thinking in the newsroom once the stuff-up became evident.

[John Waller]

Agreed @Leslie Moak Murray 

Pretty tame really. Storm in a tea cup.

It's just not often that a newsroom puts their hand up in Australia. That was the real news story.

Guess there was some extra Photoshop training at Nine News this week.

[Nancy OShea]

This was in my Twitter/X feed today.  Social media is rife with "AI enhanced" images & videos. Some is over the top like this one. But the majority is much subtler and mistaken for the real thing — until someone calls it out as AI.

[Nancy OShea]

Like this:

It's laughable how bad AI is in the wrong hands.

[John Waller]

Agreed @Nancy OShea . Those are extreme examples, more for amusement than anything.

But these are early days.

AI in the hands of the masses is very new. We're all exploring the potential. It was used extensively during COVID to help us grasp big data and guide public policy such as lockdowns.

It's already in MS Office. Plus deep fakes are rife.

Will it one day swing a jury verdict, like DNA?

[Nancy OShea]

Chat GPT is already used by the legal profession to assist in writing court briefs & motions.  But that has backfired, too.

AI is great when it works right, but it's awful when it doesn't.