Welcome to the future: Media broadcasts now digitally altering reality

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NEW YORK (AFP) - The CBS television network has broken a taboo by digitally inserting advertising images into its news programs -- a practice formerly reserved for sports and entertainment broadcasts.

Since November 1, viewers of "The Early Show," a morning news program, have seen a panel with the CBS logo digitally inserted into the New York city landscape behind reporters.

For those watching its broadcast of New Year's festivities at Times Square, a billboard with the CBS logo was visible behind star anchorman Dan Rather. The sign was not in fact in Times Square but had been digitally generated so viewers would see it in place of actual signs for beer and rival network

"No news report was in any way affected by the use of this technology. We'll never use it in a report," said Sandy Genelius, a spokeswoman for CBS News.

"But in Times Square the anchor was among a dozen neon billboards. We merely added one logo," she said.

She said the digital addition had been hotly debated by CBS editors, and some of them opposed it.

"We'll continue to debate this issue every time the possibility arises to use this technology again," Genelius said.

In an interview with the New York Times, "Early Show" producer Steve Friedman called the virtual sign "a great way to do things without ruining the environment."

"We haven't even scratched the surface of its uses yet," Friedman said.

Made possible with a technology developed by a company called Princeton Video Image, the digital illusion can only be detected by a trained eye.

"I don't think any viewer is deceived," Genelius said. "It's a little hard to believe that the CBS logo is painted in the middle of Fifth Avenue." But some observers worry that CBS has opened a Pandora's Box.

"While I don't consider this to be a major issue, it is to be condemned for the simple reason that the news, in so far as possible, should adhere to a precise and literal standard of the truth," said James Carey, a professor of ethics at the Columbia University School of Journalism.

And Harry Jessel, editor in chief of the magazine Broadcasting and Cable, said: "It does raise some ethical questions for CBS. Viewers should be able to rely on the fact that what they are seeing is actually there."

Use of electronic illusions on news programs has provoked polemics in the United States in the past.

In 1994, ABC News apologized to viewers for having broadcast an image of a correspondent in Washington who appeared to be standing before the White House but in fact was standing in the studio in front of a blue wall onto which an image of the White House had been projected.



-- George O. (@ .), January 23, 2000

Answers

So what your saying is that Clinton could be superimposed on to the White house lawn, but in reality, be sitting at his bedside in his underware? That's a really gross thought. I'll settle for the digitising.

-- Robert J (crandalls@cableone.net), January 23, 2000.

The use of digital forgery has been in place
for some time now. I decline to list examples.
Do not take for granted the veracity of any
digital photograph. Along with the capability
comes the incentive to use it. A hundred years
ago the only method was through newsprint, now
photos and videos are used to influence the masses.

-- spider (spider0@usa.net), January 23, 2000.

Interesting: Imagine that your company paid $$$$$$ for the real billboard space and then had CBS digitally erase it and cover the space with their add. I am afraid we are in the stage of the game where we can't believe anything we see on TV. "What is truth" - Pontius Pilate

-- dozerdoctor (dozerdoc@yahoo.com), January 23, 2000.

Spider, Why do you decline to list examples?

-- Just Curious (jnmpow@flash.net), January 24, 2000.

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