http://pbs.twimg.com/media/CGzQNa5UQAAfwqa.jpg
http://m.segye.com/content/image/2014/05/01/20140501001112_0.jpg
The fake photos
Do you know the circumstances in these two photos are all manipulated? In the photos, South Korean president Park Geun-hye is in the middle and meets people. First photo was taken at the hospital after MERS had spread and the second photo was taken at the group memorial altar of the students from Sewol ferry sinking. Both photos are used for the news to show how president cares about citizens in difficult situation. Although different, both photos are sufficient enough to show the warmth of the president before they revealed as fake.
As the MERS virus spread quickly in South Korea, the government has faced public criticism for insufficient handling of situation. Government tried to calm the worries by showing the president's action as visiting the hospital. If you see the picture, you can easily find out the president with doctors talking about MERS. The subtitles can be translated in English as "Does the discharge of the patients means that other patients could also be recovered if we do our best?"
However, the woman next to president is from Saenuri, the ruling party. The problem is that it is in the parachuting in of a woman who is not in the hospital already. There are another photo which shows president and other doctors. However the clocks in both photos tell us the time is exactly same. We can easily assume that president was at the same place and doctors just pose next to her. Also there is the big lie hidden in this picture. Government revealed the list of the hospital where people with MERS treated. And the hospital which is the background of the photo is not on the list. So president went to the wrong hospital!
The Sewol ferry sinking crisis was the biggest tragic in 2014. The ferry capsized on the way to Jeju island carrying 476 people. Only 172 survived form the disaster. At this time, people blame the government for acting too slowly and not doing enough. Therefore president went to the group memorial altar to comfort families of victims. We can feel the sad of the old woman next to the president. It's quite touching photos because two women are holding each other and share their sorrow. However, the old woman is not the family of the victims. She is the member of president's election camp and famous for her loyalty to the president. The president never hugged or spoke to the real families of victims at that time.
Both photos include the president and people who seemed like citizens. First picture shows the doctors' serious faces. People could think that president and doctors are all work hard for stopping the spread of MERS. Also some news reported the false story as the president visited the hospital where the patient with MERS was treated. Second picture shows the sadness of the people but it turned out to be crocodile tears. Both are character-driven photos and the background is the place where socially important. We can guess that these two pictures are taken by professional photographers because the angle is very nice to deliver the message which government wanted. They seemed natural but were taken under the count.
Many governments in this world use photo to deceive the citizens. However there are smart people who revealed the truth and the truth could be easily spread by SNS. When people know the two photos are fake, they are disappointed and will choose the other party at the election. Therefore photographers and government should try to solve the problem not try to hide the problem. Because there is no secret in this digital world.
Hi I'm Jun Ki from your class. I first want to let you know that I find your essay very shocking! I kind of expected government would do something like this, but I was surprised that they do it very often. Your essay is very interesting and your description of picture is detailed enough so that I could understand what is awkward in the pictures. I can cleary see your thesis and what you are trying to say. Great writing!
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