Kate Middleton Confusion over editing photo age AI 2024
News agencies with strict guidelines took down photos of the Duchess of Cambridge published by the British Royal Family after it was discovered to have been edited.
The Duchess later admitted to the editing and apologized, but with AI-generated images becoming a hot topic, speculation appears to have Confusion gone overboard.
Prince William at Windsor Castle
Kensington Palace published a photo of Kate Middleton, Duchess of Cambridge, on March 10 (UK time). The photo, which was also shared on the royal couple’s Instagram , shows the Duchess sitting and smiling,
surrounded by her three children, and was reportedly taken by Prince William at Windsor Castle. The photo was widely distributed by the Confusion Associated Press, AFP, Reuters, Getty Images, and others. However, a few hours later, these agencies removed the photo and warned their clients not to use it under any circumstances.
“After further review, the image appears to have been doctored by its source,” the Associated Press wrote in a kill notice. The AFP news agency cited “editorial issues” and said it would “not use” the photo “in any way.”
News outlets that had published it, including the New York Times and the Washington Post, have since removed it.
Crown Princess Catherine apologizes with X
On March 11 (UK time), Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, acknowledged the edits and apologized on the Kensington Palace Twitter account , Confusion saying, “Like many amateur photographers, I occasionally experiment with editing images. I apologise for any confusion caused by the family photo I published yesterday.”
The Instagram post remains up, reading: Confusion “Thank you all so much for your kind thoughts and continued support over the last two months.
Happy Mother’s Day. In the UK, Mother’s Day falls on March 10th.
Several inconsistencies were pointed out about the photo, most notably Princess Charlotte’s left hand, where her skirt appears to overlap where the bottom of her sweater should be.
The Associated Press stated, “After reviewing, it appears that the image was altered by its source in a manner that doesn’t meet the standards of the Associated Press. There is an inconsistency in the area of Princess Charlotte’s left hand.”
Private London Clinic
The AP’s guidelines allow for “tweaks to the photo,” such as cropping or converting to grayscale, as long as the changes don’t deviate too much Confusion from the original scene, but are pretty strict, not even allowing photographers to remove red eye from their subjects.
The Duchess has not made a public appearance since her abdominal surgery on January 16. The photo was released in an apparent attempt to counter rumors and conspiracy theories, but the obvious photo-editing has ended up having the opposite effect.
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The Duchess was reportedly released from the private London Clinic on January 29 after 13 days of treatment, and has not been seen in public apart from being photographed in a car reportedly driving near Windsor Castle.
A mysterious error of judgement with predictable consequences
The extended absence has given rise to numerous conspiracy theories, most of which have stoked fears that Kate’s condition may actually be quite serious.
The photo-shopping controversy has only served to provoke further speculation in this context. It’s the predictable result of a puzzling lapse in judgment: why release such an obviously doctored image in a situation that would likely invite excessive scrutiny? Kensington Palace did not provide a response to the request for comment.
Professor Karen Douglas
Fueled by the vague conspiracy theory, internet sleuths began investigating within hours of the royals releasing the photos . This is driven by a desire for clarity and certainty, Confusion explains Professor Karen Douglas of the University of Kent, who has studied the psychology of conspiracy theories.
“When people feel like something is being hidden, they often connect the dots” and try to make sense of things by finding connections that don’t actually exist.
The royal family has often been subject to accusations of digital manipulation, including rumors that a family photo released over Christmas was digitally altered .
What makes this case particularly noteworthy is that it comes at a time when the media and the public are on high alert over artificial intelligence (AI) that can generate realistic images, voices and even videos with simple instructions.
While there are legitimate concerns about AI-based image manipulation, Kate’s photo is a reminder that it doesn’t take much skill to manipulate an image. Given Kate’s apology, one could conclude that the photo was a failure of traditional image editing software,
Photoshop. Photoshop also employs AI tools, but Kate’s manipulation was not at a level that would keep technicians up at night searching for Confusion “evidence.”
If there’s one important lesson to be learned from this incident, it’s that people who want to tamper with something digitally don’t leave any obvious traces behind.
