Let tech help us distinguish reality from fiction: Panel at Xposure 2025

Photo: Sharjah Government Media Bureau

The International Photography Festival, Xposure 2025, is showcasing over 2,500 powerful photographs taken by some of the most well-known photojournalists in the world. Alongside these exhibits, the festival is also hosting discussions and talks on crucial global issues, including one of the most urgent debates of our time: How can we tell what is real and what is fake in the digital age?

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One of the most important discussions at the festival was a panel titled 'Challenging the Integrity of Truth.' A group of respected journalists and industry experts gathered to talk about how artificial intelligence, social media, and digital manipulation are making it harder than ever to separate fact from fiction in visual storytelling.

The Fight for Truth in Photography

Santiago Lyon, who leads advocacy and education for Adobe’s Content Authenticity Initiative, raised a serious concern. “We live in an era where we have no clear way of knowing where the images we see online come from,” he said. “People trust what they see, but that trust is often built on habit or rumors rather than facts.”

Lyon and his team at Adobe are working with camera manufacturers to develop a system that embeds proof of authenticity directly into digital images. This means that every picture will carry hidden details that show its origin and any edits it has undergone. He described it as a “digital nutrition label” that will help people determine whether an image is genuine or has been altered.

The Responsibility of Journalists

Another panelist, Mohammed Muheisen, a two-time Pulitzer Prize-winning photographer and a National Geographic Explorer, spoke about the ethical responsibilities of journalists. “Journalism is about truth. Art, on the other hand, allows creativity and interpretation,” he said. “If AI is used in creating or editing an image, it must be disclosed. There is no middle ground.”

His statement was strongly supported by Veronique de Viguerie, an award-winning French photographer. She emphasized that ethics in journalism must remain strong. “We are no longer just capturing reality; we now have to prove it,” she explained. “Without transparency, our profession loses its value.”

The Double-Edged Sword of Social Media

De Viguerie also pointed out that social media has played both a positive and negative role in this issue. “On one hand, false images can spread rapidly. But at the same time, social media helps in exposing fake content,” she said. “Eventually, misinformation is corrected, but the damage has already been done by then.”

Maria Mann, a respected photojournalism consultant, agreed that manipulation of images is nothing new. Editors have always had the power to crop photos, change captions, or frame a story in a certain way. “Sometimes, even small edits can change the meaning of an image completely,” she warned.

What Happens When History is Altered?

The discussion also touched on the long-term effects of digital image manipulation. Salim Amin, head of Camerapix, raised a key concern: How do we protect history in a world where AI can create fake images? “In the past, we had physical negatives to verify authenticity. But in the digital world, an AI-generated image could one day be mistaken for historical fact,” he said.

This concern highlights the urgent need to find ways to safeguard truth in journalism. Without clear proof of what is real, misinformation can spread quickly, affecting public perception and even rewriting history.

Moving Forward in the Digital Age

The panel made one thing very clear: journalism must evolve to keep up with these new challenges. Truth has always been the foundation of photojournalism, but in a world where technology can create realistic fake images in seconds, proving what is real is more important than ever. The industry must focus on transparency, ethics, and technological solutions to maintain credibility.

As the discussion concluded, one message stood out: The future of journalism depends on trust. And trust depends on truth

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