Visual Communication. Janis Teruggi Page

Чтение книги онлайн.

СКАЧАТЬ magazine edited and darkened a cover photo of African American murder suspect O.J. Simpson in a move that some said had the effect of making him look more menacing (Black and Roberts, 2011).

      News organizations and professional photojournalism organizations have specific guidelines regarding manipulation. The Associated Press (AP) policy begins, “AP visuals must always tell the truth. We do not alter or digitally manipulate the content of a photograph in any way” (AP n.d.). However, the policy goes on to say minor adjustments are acceptable including cropping, dodging, and burning, conversion into grayscale and normal toning and color adjustments which should be “limited to those minimally necessary for clear and accurate reproduction” (AP n.d., para. 2).

      The New York Times also has policies against photo manipulation, however, it acknowledged that fashion photography in its T Magazine has different rules (Sullivan, 2013). The magazine's fashion editors argued that fashion is a different genre of photography and that the publication's readers recognize that “fashion is fantasy.” Their public editor (an ombudsperson) suggested that fashion spreads should be subject to the same rules as any other part of the publication or at the very least should have a sort of warning label about the different standards for fashion (Sullivan, 2013). Of course, these policies do not govern the photo manipulation that goes on in fashion advertising carried on their pages. Fashion brands and advertisements frequently manipulate photos to make models appear thinner and to eliminate “flaws” they may have. Some critics argue that such alterations give people unrealistic ideas about body images they may aspire to and may even lead to eating disorders (Bissell, 2006; Reaves et al., 2004).

      In the past, with film‐based, analog photography, it was usually possible to compare film negatives with altered pictures and detect a fake. Today, however, people with even minimal skills can create mashups, edit their own photos, remove or add individuals, and so on. Individuals can easily share images on social networks like Snapchat, Facebook, and Instagram.

      Framing that Distorts Reality

      Decisions about how tightly a photographer frames their image can make a significant difference in how viewers interpret its meaning. The famous wartime photographer, Robert Capa said, “If your pictures aren't good enough, you're not close enough” (Bird, 2002). For many photographers, deciding how closely a person or event should be shot relates more to the skill and artistry of good photography rather than consideration of how they may be altering viewer perceptions. In an effort to create a more arresting or dramatic photo, the photographer may be presenting an image that distorts the reality of the event.

Similarly, cropping an image, an everyday activity for photojournalists and editors, might also be considered as a form of manipulation. The not‐for‐profit journalistic publication ProPublica reported on photos and videos taken during the US invasion of Iraq in 2003 (Maass, 2011). Videos and still photos of crowds pulling down a statue of dictator Saddam Hussein in a public square rocketed around the world. News organizations reported it as revealing the US victory and the Iraqi people's joy at the defeat of a ruthless dictator. The close‐up shots seemed to show a jubilant crowd of Iraqis and US soldiers as they slung a rope around the statue and dragged it from its pedestal: a potent symbol of Saddam himself being toppled from power. But a more distant shot, without benefit of cropping, shows only a scattering of people in a mostly empty square, an image that likely would convey a different meaning from the tight rendering. The choice of the more dramatic image may misrepresent the event it is supposed to document.

      The Saddam statue cropping is an example of visual framing. Framing theory offers us a way to understand how messages communicate different meanings. A frame, whether it's expressed verbally or visually, highlights certain aspects of a phenomenon or event while eliminating or minimizing others. We can't describe everything about any event – there are just too many factors. For example, imagine that you're describing a lunch with a good friend. You had a lively conversation, laughed about some of the funny things that have happened in the past week, and shared some worries about the future. You dined on Japanese food and drank tea. In talking about the lunch with a foodie friend, you might emphasize the meal and show your Instagram photo of the sushi. For a different friend, you might focus on the enjoyment of the laughs and jokes and post a photo of the good time on Facebook. As you can see, it's the same event, but you make choices about what you want to highlight for the person you're speaking with or what was most important to you.

According to Entman (1993), frames have four main elements: (i) defining aspects of a problem, (ii) identifying causes, (iii) making moral judgments, and (iv) implying solutions. For instance, if policymakers and citizens identify obesity as a public health problem that should be addressed, news stories or campaigns can be told with many different frames, and these frames have moral and ethical implications (Figure 2.5). If the message is “you should eat healthy meals and exercise more,” the campaign suggests the individual responsibility frame. With this framing, the problem lies with each person who should have the will and capability to alter his behavior. Such individual responsibility frames, some critics say, unfairly victimize individuals. If the message is “people who live in ‘food deserts’ in urban areas don't have access to healthful foods,” the problem is framed to highlight social or economic issues within cities and towns. Another frame could use fear appeals that graphically show the risks of obesity or even shame appeals. Thus, you can see that morals, judgments, and values imbue all human expression.

       Figure 2.5 Example using “obesity” to illustrate elements of framing.

       Source: Children's Healthcare of Atlanta/NPR.

      Effects of Virtual Reality

      Emerging virtual reality technologies have potential side effects because, psychologically and physically, the experiences seem to be so real. Early studies already suggest that people's beliefs and ideas are affected by a virtual reality experience. For example, in an environmentally focused experiment where subjects “virtually” cut down a tree in a single episode, participants were more likely to use fewer paper towels to clean up a spill later (Nicas, 2016). Other media and filmmakers have produced work that has had individuals experience traumatic situations such as bombings, a diabetic coma, and even the aftermath of being in the World Trade Center on 9/11. This melding of experiential and visual stimuli has powerful potential ethical implications. This has to do with the issue of choice – that is, we as human beings can choose to use and apply a technology – or not.

      Visual Metaphors and Ethics

      We all use metaphors every day, mostly without giving them much thought. We say things like “he saw the light” meaning that someone came to understand something, or “in a nutshell,” meaning that someone is about to briefly summarize a concept or event. We say, “don't shoot the messenger,” “that's the elephant in the room,” and “that's a slippery slope.” Lakoff and Johnson (1980) suggest that “the essence of metaphor is understanding one thing in terms of another” (p. 5) leading us to different ways of interpreting a message. You’ll read more about visual metaphors in Chapter 5.

      Brand Mascots and Celebrities

Brands frequently use mascots and celebrities as metaphors for the benefits of their products and services. You may have heard of Q Scores, a research service that measures the appeal of various sports figures, movie stars, and musical performers. The appeal is largely powered by photos, images, and drawings. СКАЧАТЬ