Monday, March 2, 2009
Pictures That Lie: Oprah Is Not Really Oprah
On the cover of TV Guide's August 1989 edition, Oprah is pictured sitting on a huge pile of in a flashy dress, revealing her svelte body. There is one tiny problem though: it's not her body. TV Guide cropped Oprah's head and pasted it onto actress Ann-Margaret's body. Ann-Margaret had posed in the dress ten years before for a publicity shoot. The photographer seemingly doctored the picture to make Oprah look slimmer and to flaunt her wealth to illustrate the cover's title "Oprah! The Richest Woman on TV?". This picture manipulation was harmful because neither Oprah nor Ann-Margaret had agreed to this alteration. Picturing Oprah on top of a pile of money also negatively depicts her as a self-centered celebrity who basks in her fame, when clearly this is not the case. Oprah is known for donating to many charities and organizations, such as 46664 and Oprah's Angel Network. I chose to discuss this doctored photo because this phenomenon is very common among magazines because editors are trying to have a celebrity depict a certain image to the public that may be very different from what both the public and the celebrity expected. This is how rumors get started and the celebrity's career and reputation could end up in ruins.
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This is so true! The majority of these manipulations always result in some harm even if it isn't intended. You'd think that celebrities would want such alterations, but in the end many revolt against such huge alterations.
ReplyDeleteI agree. This photo highlights two different aspects of celebrities and photo-manipulation. First, you have what you discussed, that someone with good Photoshop skills can create a realistic photo of a celebrity in a damaging situation or look (off the top of my head I think of the first fake battered Rhianna pictures that hit the web). Second, the whole issue of airbrushing and digitally manipulating images of famous women to be thinner and curvier with better skin and hair. It is harmful because it gives the average women completely unrealistic expectations and goals.
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