ADVERTISEMENT

The traditional TV news media has been having a rough time in the last few years. According to a recent survey, more Americans have a negative (43%) than a positive (33%) view of the mass media, and are finding it harder to be well informed because it is getting harder to determine which news is accurate.

So what is media's biggest problem? It's bigotry. While ideally all types of media should be objective and hold power to account, in reality, we know that most news outlets are partisan and have their agenda to advance. Whether state-owned or run by some shady tax-avoiding billionaire, getting 'the masses' to view the world from a certain perspective has always been a priceless power to wield.

So why is trust in the media so low? Well, according to the same survey, 8 out of 10 Americans believe that the news media are critical to their democracy. The gap between these lofty expectations of an honest, objective media and the performance that they deliver is large. Times, when the mask slips and examples of media manipulation are exposed, is hugely damaging to trust (don't even get me started on the 2003 Iraq war), and people naturally turn to social media for other, even-easier-to-manipulate sources. Thus we are in the current state in which we find ourselves: confused, mistrustful and divided.

People have been posting examples of fake news and how media can use different techniques of deception, to trick you into seeing exactly what they wanted you to see. As you will discover, perspective is everything! It all goes to show that a healthy dose of skepticism goes a long way, and getting your news from a wide range of different sources is your best bet to a more rounded view of the world we live in. Social media is good in that respect, but bad regarding regulation, trolling and people shouting horrible things at each other. The good old traditional news media is needed as a forum for rational debate and expert opinion, but they must stop with the manipulation already! Scroll down to check out the cheeky photo manipulations in action for yourself, and let us know what you think in the comments!

#1

Photo Taken When Kate Middleton And Prince William Presented Third Royal Baby To The World

Photo Taken When Kate Middleton And Prince William Presented Third Royal Baby To The World

Reuters/ Hannah Mckay Report

Add photo comments
POST
sanchit-mit2006 avatar
Ladies and Gentlemen
Community Member
5 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I don't know if its odd, but i show number 3 by pinching the pinky finger down to thumb, not this way!

View More Replies...
View more commentsArrow down menu
#3

U.s. Marines From The 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit Help An Iraqi Soldier With Water From A Canteen In Southern Iraq, March 21, 2003

U.s. Marines From The 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit Help An Iraqi Soldier With Water From A Canteen In Southern Iraq, March 21, 2003

AP Report

#4

Presidential Inauguration Of Donald Trump

Presidential Inauguration Of Donald Trump

Indi_Comments Report

Add photo comments
POST
ruthbh avatar
Ruth Hempsey
Community Member
5 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

He's waving at the camera and reporters because there aren't any other people except security.

View more commentsArrow down menu
#5

Hillary Rally In Omaha

Hillary Rally In Omaha

abbydphillip Report

Add photo comments
POST
luckymama2412 avatar
Elle Campbell
Community Member
5 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

That's more than 50 people. And it's still more than the "Yuge crowds" of legitimate(unpaid) tRump supporters that show up for his rallies.

View More Replies...
View more commentsArrow down menu
#7

Conservative Leader Theresa May Launches The Party's Campaign Bus In Northumberland

Conservative Leader Theresa May Launches The Party's Campaign Bus In Northumberland

Stefan Rousseau/PA Archive/PA Images Report

Add photo comments
POST
diz_1 avatar
Laugh Fan
Community Member
5 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Think I'm going to assume this is done for most of these types of events!

View More Replies...
View more commentsArrow down menu
#8

Photographer Ruben Salvadori Covered The Conflict Between Israeli Soldiers And Palestinian Youths. The Picture Above Was Staged In Cooperation With A Young Palestinian

Photographer Ruben Salvadori Covered The Conflict Between Israeli Soldiers And Palestinian Youths. The Picture Above Was Staged In Cooperation With A Young Palestinian

Ruben Salvadori Report

Add photo comments
POST
kjorn avatar
Kjorn
Community Member
5 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

never trust BOTH sides… Israeli and palestinian use disinformation.

View More Replies...
View more commentsArrow down menu
ADVERTISEMENT
#9

Pro-Immigration Protest

Pro-Immigration Protest

TrumpOrTreason Report

Add photo comments
POST
paul_oconnor avatar
Paul O'Connor
Community Member
5 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Because it was demonstration ILLUSTRATING child detention, not purporting to actually show it. Hence the kids in the cages are holding protest signs. Someone took it and made a meme, which is why THAT photo is on a page talking about how pictures can lie. But yeah, kids were still put behind bars for real elsewhere.

View More Replies...
View more commentsArrow down menu
#10

Tax Protest In Paris

Tax Protest In Paris

civsnet Report

Add photo comments
POST
buckobell01 avatar
VoxyMan
Community Member
5 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Many of these examples are what photographers are SUPPOSED to do, it's not fake news.

View More Replies...
View more commentsArrow down menu
ADVERTISEMENT
See Also on Bored Panda
#11

Hillary Clinton Event In Ohio

Hillary Clinton Event In Ohio

edhenry Report

Add photo comments
POST
david-glowen avatar
Glowdaddy
Community Member
5 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Again we zoom/ crop personal pictures to get a better view of the subject. I don't feel like the first picture is an attempt to deceive.

annarepp avatar
Anna Repp
Community Member
5 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

So? She never claimed hundreds of thousands attended her rallies.

keepingupwiththekuethers avatar
Keeping Up With The Kuethers
Community Member
5 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

So photographers are suppose to stand in the back of a room and take pictures now??

leah_dodd avatar
Leah Dodd
Community Member
5 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Hahahaha nice job censoring my comment guys. Let me try again. Why would a photographer for the media take a photo of an event without showing the subject matter in detail? What good is a photo from 10 meters away, zoomed out, showing lots of wood floor? Stop making big deals out of nothing.

leah_dodd avatar
Leah Dodd
Community Member
5 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Why would a photographer for the media take a photo of an event that does not show the subjects in detail, but instead is taken from 10m back, from a distance, showing little people and lots of wood floor? Seriously. You talk about media deception but all you do (Bored Panda) is make mountains out of molehills.

maggiec2ditto avatar
Maggie Collins
Community Member
5 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

First thing I thought! Was the bottom one taken way before and the top one later? I cannot tell.

stimpy avatar
Stimpy
Community Member
5 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I always thought these kind of manipulative images are released by the PR departments of the candidates, and the press kind of have to publish the images they are given (the candidates would probably not allow non-approved photographers, right?). So this would be more a case of lying/untrustworthy candidates than lying/untrustworthy press, wouldn't it?

hlcox avatar
Heather Cox
Community Member
5 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Honestly, I feel like if a woman is president it would be as a token so the Americans can say they've had a female leader. There are lots of other countries, including Canada, who have females leaders, and have been just fine at times, and other times not so fine. It doesn't matter who it is, there good leaders and s****y leaders.

j-l_harris avatar
Josie LH
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Yes let’s make news photographers stand 200 metres away from the subject they’re capturing. For accuracy’s sake, of course.

airbornerangervet avatar
Lewis Jones
Community Member
5 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

yawn.....really b***h, how many uncropped pics are going up as lies?

call_me_chelle avatar
Chelle Jones
Community Member
5 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I love how the liberal Democrats make excuses for all the Clinton pictures. Face it the woman can not even fill up a gymnasium at a local high school.

patriciaross avatar
tuzdayschild
Community Member
5 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

This is an old trick. They used to do the same thing for Bob Hope entertaining the troops. You get a very stylized view of the crowd.

numinosa avatar
Ottmar Straub
Community Member
5 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Mainstream-media in the US are behind Democrats - living in Germany it is much more easy to see the lies cause I feel no necessity to believe fabricated "truths" in order to protect my beliefs

View more commentsArrow down menu