Resources
In the realm of visual storytelling, a compelling movement has emerged among visual journalists and documentary photographers, dedicated to preserving the authentic essence of photography’s original intent. This movement reflects a steadfast commitment to distinguishing their photographic works from the deluge of images that possess photorealistic qualities yet have been extensively manipulated or even synthesized through artificial intelligence systems.
The use of AI detector tools has become increasingly important as AI-generated content, including deepfakes, misinformation, and manipulated media, has become more prevalent. These tools can play a crucial role in verifying the authenticity of digital content and helping to counter the spread of misleading or harmful information. The effectiveness of AI detector tools can vary based on the sophistication of the AI-generated content being analyzed and the constant evolution of AI techniques. As AI and deepfake technology advance, so too must the techniques used in AI detectors to stay effective.
The aim of this glossary is to share terminology being used in discussions about generative artificial intelligence, and photojournalism and documentary photography. Key terms are highlighted to signal their importance. This is not an exhaustive list; it will be expanded and refined as we proceed.
The icon 
placed next to the photographer’s name in the credit, indicates to readers that the photographer upholds the Statement of Principles , striving for fair and accurate reporting of what they experience while acknowledging the subjectivity inherent in their work.
Download the Statement of Principles to add to your website, either as an image or a PDF.
The Statement of Principles is available in several languages.
The ethical use of AI-generated images in the context of photojournalism raises important considerations regarding truth, transparency, and the preservation of journalistic integrity. While AI technology enables the creation of incredibly realistic and convincing visual content, it also presents risks such as the potential for manipulated or fabricated images to deceive the audience. Consequently, photojournalists must adhere to a strict code of ethics, ensuring that AI-generated images are clearly labeled as such and employed responsibly, without compromising the accuracy and authenticity that underpin the trust between journalists and the public they serve. It is essential to strike a balance between leveraging AI’s capabilities for enhancing storytelling and maintaining the core principles of journalistic ethics to uphold the credibility and reliability of visual journalism in the digital era.
AI technology has introduced complex and fascinating challenges to the realm of copyright law. Copyright is a legal framework that grants creators exclusive rights to their original works, such as photography and art, and now increasingly AI-generated creations. As AI technology continues to evolve, the legal and ethical landscapes around copyright will likely evolve as well. Striking a balance between incentivizing innovation, protecting human creativity, and recognizing AI contributions remains an ongoing challenge for copyright law and policy.
The Four Corners Project is meant to increase the authorship and authority of the photographer and the photograph itself by providing a fixed template to add context to each of the four corners of the image online. By clicking on each of the corners, the interested reader is able to find out more about what is referenced by the photograph.
Unpack and study the complex ethics that surround AI and photography.
Glaze is a system designed to protect human artists by disrupting style mimicry. At a high level, Glaze works by understanding the AI models that are training on human art, and using machine learning algorithms, computing a set of minimal changes to artworks, such that it appears unchanged to human eyes, but appears to AI models like a dramatically different art style. For example, human eyes might find a glazed charcoal portrait with a realism style to be unchanged, but an AI model might see the glazed version as a modern abstract style, a la Jackson Pollock. So when someone then prompts the model to generate art mimicking the charcoal artist, they will get something quite different from what they expected.