Photoshop Fiction
In January 2003, controversy erupted over the GQ magazine cover featuring Kate Winslet in which she was airbrushed and digitally-altered to look leaner. Photo-shopping in advertising has triggered strong public backlash, and as of 2011, it was denounced by the American Medical Association [1]. This medical and public opinion has spurred political action — nationally and globally. In 2009, French parliament member Valerie Boyer proposed a law that would require labels on retouched images [2].
That same year, political leaders tried and failed to ban all photo-shopping in the U.K [3]. In 2011, the U.K.’s National Advertising Division banned retouched Maybelline and Lancome advertisements, saying the advertisements misled consumers about the cosmetic products’ benefits [4].
There are two main arguments supporting government intervention in advertising retouching. First, retouching misleads the consumer on product quality and benefits. Second, photo-shopping contributes to low self-esteem and body-image disorders.
Some critics of government regulation on photo-shopping argue that laws would intrude on a business’s right to advertise its product, or on its right to free expression. Further, some critics say that individual consumers, not the government, have the responsibility to separate reality from photo-shop fiction. “We know when images are spurious — no paternalistic formal disclaimer needed,” Amanda Fortini wrote in a 2010 New York Magazine article, “The problem isn’t altered photographs; it’s our failure to alter our expectations of them.”
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
Do businesses, or only individuals, have a right to freedom of speech and expression?
Does the right to freedom of speech and expression have any limits? If so, what kinds of limits ought there be, and how are they justified?
If photo-shopping does have negative psychological effects, does the government have a duty to minimize these harms?
When (if ever) does photo-shopping constitute deception? Explain.
References
[2] Arts Technia, “Warning: this unrealistic image has been Photoshopped”
[3] Vox, The Cut New York, “In Defense of Photoshop: Why Retouching Isn’t As Evil As Everyone Thinks”
[4] Vox, The Cut New York, “Maybelline and Lancôme Ads Banned in the U.K. for Excessive Airbrushing”
