Phototruth Or Photofiction?: Ethics and Media Imagery in the Digital Age [Paperback]

Thomas H. Wheeler (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 1, 2002 | ISBN-10: 0805842616 | ISBN-13: 978-0805842616

This text examines the use of images in journalistic contexts and the manipulation of these images to accomplish varying objectives. It provides a framework for critical discussion among professionals, educators, students, and concerned consumers of newspapers, magazines, online journals, and other nonfiction media. It also offers a method of assessing the ethics of mass-media photos, which will help visual journalists to embrace new technologies while preserving their credibility.

Phototruth or Photofiction? also:
*recounts the invention of photography and how it came to be accorded an extraordinary degree of trust;
*details how photos were staged, painted, composited and otherwise faked, long before digital technology;
*lists contemporary image-altering products and practices;
*details many examples of manipulated images in nonfiction media and lists rationales offered in defense of them;
*explains how current ethical principles have been derived;
*lays groundwork for an ethical protocol by explaining conventions of taking, processing, and publishing journalistic photos; and
*offers tests for assessing the appropriateness of altered images in non-fiction media.

Each chapter is followed by "Explorations" designed to facilitate classroom discussion and to integrate into those interactions the students' own perceptions and experiences. The book is intended for students and others interested in the manipulation of images.

Editorial Reviews

Review

Among the 'pluses' of the book are the scores of quotations from academics and professionals that cause the reader to sit back and think a bit more about what he or she is reading....the content is important and may help others explain visual 'reality' to their children--or students.
—Media Ethics

Wheeler's book is a long labor of love-six years in the making. Photofact or Photofiction? is well-researched and footnoted. Each chapter offers a bibliography ('Endnotes') and the comments from the forum respondents are run throughout the text as well. The book is a smooth and interesting read. A former magazine editor, Wheeler writes precisely, concretely and compellingly. Although the book is targeted at young students aspiring to be photojournalists, graphic editors and visual communicators, its content and value is valuable to everyone.
—Visual Resources

...Phototruth or Photofiction would serve very well as a text or supplement to undergraduate courses in photojournalism and media ethics. It is well written and covers a wide range of issues effectively and in an organized manner. Its focus on history and theory, while a bit sparse, is enough to put the issues into a context and provide a basis for the guidelines the author provides. It also provides detailed examples from newspaper and magazine journalism of acceptable modifications, those changes that are in the gray areas, and those that are clearly indefensible.
—Journalism Studies

Tom Wheeler delivers the book academia needs and does so with graceful writing, tight organization and fairness. This is an important contribution to Visual Communication.
—Shiela Reaves
University of Wisconsin-Madison

Product Details

• Paperback: 240 pages
• Publisher: Routledge (May 1, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0805842616
• ISBN-13: 978-0805842616
• Product Dimensions: 9.8 x 6.9 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,110,916 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.