What is Fauxtography?
1.
Fraudulent photography. News images that have been faked by various means, generally to promote an ideological agenda or to manipulate the emotions of the viewer. (Derived from a combination of the French term faux meaning “false,” and “-tography,” the second half of the word “photography.”)
The word was first used to describe the doctoring of photographs by Reuters photographer Adnan Hajj during the Lebanon War of 2006, and has since been generalized to mean any dishonest or faked news photo.
Methods for creating “fauxtographs” include: using Photoshop (or similar software) to digitally alter the photo; photographing staged scenes or simulated news events and presenting them as real; interfering with or manipulating photo subjects to creat a “more effective” picture; adding inaccurate and/or misleading captions.
"Since (in their world view) the ends justify the means, terrorist leaders, and their willing accomplices in the moonstream media, have employed fauxtography to deceive tens of millions of illiterate Muslims into believing faked atrocities. Many educated Muslims have been duped as well."
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2.
Staged, doctored, or misleadingly cropped or labeled photographs intended as war propaganda, particularly to further the interests of terrorist groups such as Hizbollah and Hamas. Term popularized by Charles Johnson of Little Green Footballs.
Various bloggers have uncovered several cases of fauxtography in Reuters' photo coverage of the Israel-Hizbollah conflict.
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3.
The use of Photoshop or other means of digital image manipulation to remove or cover-up element of a photograph.
Most commoly found in advertising and beauty magazines, especially images of women, to remove supposed flaws and imperfections by turning them into smooth-skinned, 'prefect' beings.
Can be used on any other subject matter to imply and deceive rather than being used for artistic purposes.
A single image may be referred to as a 'fauxtograph' or 'fauxto' and could depict flying saucers, ghosts or the head of a famous celebrity on a naked body.
1. 'Look at her skin! Typical fauxtography going on there'
2. 'They said they definately met insert celebrity, but turns out is was just a very convincing fauxtograph.
3. 'Dude, thats not really insert celebrity, its just a fauxto.'
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4.
the crappy pictures of the sky or dead plants that scene kids take with their digital cameras and call it a hobby. They say photography is their passion, but we all know it's really fauxtography.
Wow, a picture of the sky. And I see you went on paint and added your name with a TM. Now no one can steal your fauxtography.
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