The CS Monitor recently ran an article about digital manipulation in photojournalism.

Photojournalism is only one aspect where the readership is demanding more influence over, or at least insight into, judgment calls in news media. I believe that with regard to dominant media outlets which claim objectivity, these demands deserve recognition. The New York Times acknowledged as much in creating the position of Public Editor / Omsbudsperson. Photojournalism is an interesting submedium, though, because of the much stronger cognitive bias in favor of “seeing is believing” (versus “reading is believing”). The larger degree of attributed veracity demands greater accountability.

That said, greater accountability in any medium can bring with it the danger of greater repression, whether self-censorship or censorship driven by outside authority. One solution which aims to balance veracity and freedom is the after-the-fact audit, of which the NYT’s public editor position is an example. In photojournalism, a technical solution may ease attainment of this median approach.

Imagine a standard which requires all raw photos to be deposited in an archive outside the photojournalist’s control. As digital cameras continue to dominate photojournalism, this should be reasonably easy to implement. The archive is just that — not a prior restriction on publication, nor an attempt to intimidate photojournalists. Rather, it ensures that after the fact, others can browse, critique the journalist’s work, and make their own judgments about political (or even aesthetic) bias. Potentially, this archive could be open to an omsbudsperson immediately for review, and to a citizen’s review committee after some passage of time. By ensuring that there will be eventual disclosure of the raw photos, it discourages funny business on the part of photographers. It still allows for individualism and artistry, but with a standard process for judging slant after the fact. It’s also possible that by agreeing to such adjudication, mainstream media outlets may gain a credibility edge over amateurs such as bloggers. It may, therefore, in fact be in the interest of Grey (and other colored) Ladies to support such an adjudicated archive.

As an aside, lessons from adjudicated cryptographic protocols may inform both the design and implementation of such a scheme.