Truth in Photoshopping

[Gary A.]

Yet there's nothing limiting the models from cosmetic surgery or other body "enhancing" surgery. What's the difference?

Surgery is real ... Photoshopping is not real.

 

[Destin]

Yet there's nothing limiting the models from cosmetic surgery or other body "enhancing" surgery. What's the difference?

Surgery is real ... Photoshopping is not real.

That doesn’t make it a healthy thing to promote.

 

[Gary A.]

young women won’t be idealizing unattainable body images.

Seriously? Forget the surgery for now, but let me ask something, how many women including yourself, use makeup? Why do they do It? Isn't it an attempt to create the illusion of a more pleasing look? The point is I think women have been striving for the ideal unattainable body image far longer then PS has been around. Frankly I see this as nothing more than a useless "feel good" law. Women will still spend billions on cosmetics, clothes, and surgeries, to achieve the perceived ideal look.

Men invented the high heel shoe, push-up bras and the idea that women "need" cosmetics to look better.

 

[Gary A.]

Using makeup to enhance your looks is not comparable to starving yourself to attain a “thigh gap” that was created via Photoshop.

ETA - please don’t quote me out of context

I like thigh gap.

 

[Gary A.]

Yet there's nothing limiting the models from cosmetic surgery or other body "enhancing" surgery. What's the difference?

I think with less photoshopping there will be fewer surgeries as young women won’t be idealizing unattainable body images.

Per the article, just labeling that a photo has been photoshopped may also stem a flow of unnecessary surgery and may foster a realization that the viewed body type is crafted by imagination rather than genes, diet, exercise and surgery.

 

[Gary A.]

Yet there's nothing limiting the models from cosmetic surgery or other body "enhancing" surgery. What's the difference?

Surgery is real ... Photoshopping is not real.

That doesn’t make it a healthy thing to promote.

The question was what's the difference. I was explaining the difference between the two. I have no wishes to promote either methodology as proper or healthy ... but I do have a desire for transparency.

 

[Gary A.]

Using makeup to enhance your looks is not comparable to starving yourself to attain a “thigh gap” that was created via Photoshop.

ETA - please don’t quote me out of context

So what you're saying is that it's okay for women to reach for an unattainable look, it's only the extent of the process you have a problem with. Who decides the limit?
Even if it does slow down one thing which i doubt, 10 more will pop up. Corsets date back to the 16th century, with the bindings so tight in some cases it took the assistance of a strong helper to tie them. Surely that couldn't have been healthy. The oriental practice of foot binding dates back a millennium and was practiced to create the idealized foot. The list goes on and on. Like prohibition in this country, people still drank, and this law will do little if anything to change feminine perceptions of the ideal image.
As to the effect on young girls you're missing what should be "the most important influence" on any child's life - the parents.

You have absolutely no data to support your assertion(s). It was a much different world back then. Hopefully we are progressing toward a better a more gender equitable world. The more transparency and truth ... even truth in advertising is progress. And France is actually leading way, blazing a path.

 

[terri]

Exactly what Gary said. Isn't it better for a certain more impressionable audience to look at these kinds of photos, see the disclaimer, and be able to immediately say to themselves, "It's not real"?

Of course, parents are part of the reinforcement of healthy body images, but they can't be around 24/7 to monitor everything kids see.

I applaud the the effort here to keeping things real with this kind of photography.

 

[Gary A.]

Using makeup to enhance your looks is not comparable to starving yourself to attain a “thigh gap” that was created via Photoshop.

ETA - please don’t quote me out of context

So what you're saying is that it's okay for women to reach for an unattainable look, it's only the extent of the process you have a problem with. Who decides the limit?
Even if it does slow down one thing which i doubt, 10 more will pop up. Corsets date back to the 16th century, with the bindings so tight in some cases it took the assistance of a strong helper to tie them. Surely that couldn't have been healthy. The oriental practice of foot binding dates back a millennium and was practiced to create the idealized foot. The list goes on and on. Like prohibition in this country, people still drank, and this law will do little if anything to change feminine perceptions of the ideal image.
As to the effect on young girls you're missing what should be "the most important influence" on any child's life - the parents.

Easy to say if you don't have a daughter with these issues but I can assure you that no amount of love can prevent an eating disorder.

Are you suggesting that anorexia/bulemia is the product of bad parenting?? I find this conclusion troubling and perhaps poorly thought out.

I am not saying, Truth in Advertising, will correct all/any/some/most/et al ills of society. But if it contributes and helps all/any/some/most/et al feel better about themselves ... then why not use a simple label as another piece of a "well" society puzzle. If Truth in Advertising allows impressionable people to realize that even professionals aren't resorting to surgery or starvation ... that is a good thing. None of this will happen overnight, but it is good that it has started.

 

[Gary A.]

it's only the extent of the process you have a problem with. Who decides the limit?

This is exactly what bothers me about it. Today it's body shape, tomorrow it could be removing blemishes. What's next?

Idealising beauty has always been a very important part of human society, only the standards are constantly shifting. Standards were usually a result of current situation. When food was scarce, a more corpulent body shape was desired, because it indicated the person is well fed and can potentially take care of kids. Nowadays we have a huge problem with obesity in the world, so a thin look is naturally seen as a better alternative in order to fight it. Is trying to look more appealing and be more healthy a bad thing?

If someone has mental issues, something's wrong and he/she needs to see a specialist, but I can guarantee you that sentence "this image has been altered" won't help a bit.

So it should not be pursued because it MIGHT not be effective? I would only take this approach to inconsequential problems.

No. But putting more laws on the books just for the sake of putting laws on the books is a terrible approach to government.

Frankly, I don’t see how the government should get a say in what’s printed in a privately owned and published advertisement.

It happens every single day ... i.e. cigarettes, drugs, automobiles, booze, et cetera ... government dictated/enforced disclaimers are everywhere and we are better off because of the disclaimers and transparencies .

 

[Gary A.]

Using makeup to enhance your looks is not comparable to starving yourself to attain a “thigh gap” that was created via Photoshop.

ETA - please don’t quote me out of context

So what you're saying is that it's okay for women to reach for an unattainable look, it's only the extent of the process you have a problem with. Who decides the limit?
Even if it does slow down one thing which i doubt, 10 more will pop up. Corsets date back to the 16th century, with the bindings so tight in some cases it took the assistance of a strong helper to tie them. Surely that couldn't have been healthy. The oriental practice of foot binding dates back a millennium and was practiced to create the idealized foot. The list goes on and on. Like prohibition in this country, people still drank, and this law will do little if anything to change feminine perceptions of the ideal image.
As to the effect on young girls you're missing what should be "the most important influence" on any child's life - the parents.

Easy to say if you don't have a daughter with these issues but I can assure you that no amount of love can prevent an eating disorder.

Are you suggesting that anorexia/bulemia is the product of bad parenting?? I find this conclusion troubling and perhaps poorly thought out.

Of course not, but blaming advertising for the problem is not the solution. I have empathy for any parent dealing with teen issues, we raised 3 kids, who put a lot of gray hairs on my head. Sometimes even professional help doesn't work. We have a 30 year old that is still struggling.

Parents can though be a positive influence on their children.

Nobody is blaming advertising for unnecessary cosmetic surgery or eating disorders or the like ... that would be just plain silly. But .... the big but ... advertising is part of the problem, advertising contributes to the problem and if a simple inexpensive label can help to balance out the negative by contributing to the positive ... then why not ... what do we have to lose?

 

[Gary A.]

A public recognition of the problem is a step in the right direction, however.

Public recognition of any problem like this is good, but wouldn't public service announcements on the matter explaining the problem and offering help options be a better solution then a disclaimer on a photoshopped ad?

Another step in the right direction. This isn't an either/or proposition.

 

[Gary A.]

I came a bit late to this party.

 

[Braineack]

TRIGGER WARNING ALL THE THINGS!

 

[Tomasko]

what do we have to lose?

Common sense? Sanity?

You can't post warnings, disclaimers etc all over the world, that's just silly. Advertising is a result, not the cause. Companies do studies and then do adverts like they do because it works. If people would deem such looks etc. inappropriate, companies would have to adapt their strategies. But people WANT to see attractive individuals. They instinctively prefer nice looking partners and not fatties who can't fit into a car. It's just a fact.

if a simple inexpensive label can help to balance out the negative by contributing to the positive

The thing is, it can't. Exactly the same like a text under a photo won't prevent anyone from stealing your photos. Or like a warning on a box of cigarettes won't prevent people from smoking. That's a very naive way of looking at the world.

Seriously, what kind of people are we talking about here who would be affected by that text? Would you suddenly prefer fat/unhealthy people over healthy fit looking ones? Just because of some silly text told you what you already (hopefully) know, that the image was processed? Would you suddenly change your eating habits or ...?