Deepfakes

The AI technologies that create deepfakes can generate a convincing video in which a celebrity or politician appears to say and do things they have never actually said or done, leading to a media environment in which anyone's face and image can be remixed and manipulated. This book explores the themes of trust and consent as face-swapping software becomes more common, arguing that deepfake videos allow for a new perspective on the taken-for-granted nature of contemporary media. It analyses how such videos deepen the social media environment in which the public and the personal converge, and in which all human experience becomes data to be shared.

Format: Hardback
Length: 160 pages
Publication date: 14 October 2022
Publisher: Polity Press

When we lose our ability to trust what we see, a profound shift occurs in the media landscape. The advent of deepfakes, a form of synthetic media where images and videos are manipulated to create convincing fake content, has opened up a Pandora's box of possibilities. In this new reality, AI technologies can generate an endless supply of images of celebrities or politicians, and with enough data, they can even create convincing videos in which these individuals appear to say and do things they have never actually said or done.

The result is a media environment where anyone's face and image can be remixed and manipulated, creating a sense of uncertainty and confusion. Deepfakes have already been used for a range of purposes, from celebrity porn and political satire to movie mash-ups and disinformation campaigns. They allow for a new perspective on the taken-for-granted nature of contemporary media, in which our capacity to remix and share content increasingly conflicts with our capacity to trust.

Graham Meikle's book, "Deepfakes: The Future of Fake News and Fake People," delves into the mechanics of deepfakes and their implications for society. He argues that deepfake videos allow for a new perspective on the taken-for-granted nature of contemporary media, in which our capacity to remix and share content increasingly conflicts with our capacity to trust. The book analyses how such videos deepen the social media environment in which the public and the personal converge, and in which all human experience becomes data to be shared.

Meikle's book is timely, clear, and accessible, making it an essential text for students and scholars of media, communication, cultural studies, and sociology as well as general readers. It raises important questions about the future of media, privacy, and identity, and encourages us to think critically about the information we consume and the technologies we use. As deepfakes continue to evolve and become more sophisticated, it is clear that we will need to develop new strategies to combat their spread and protect our ability to trust what we see.

Weight: 316g
Dimension: 224 x 144 x 21 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781509548200