Tool of the week for journalists - Error Level Analysis, to test if a photo is a hoax
Error Level Analysis, a site that allows you to test whether an image has been Photoshopped
– 1 min read
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Tool of the week:
What is it?
A free tool to allow you to test whether or not an image has been digitally manipulated in programmes such as Adobe Photoshop. Paste the URL of a photo and Error Level Analysis will return results in an instant. The tool tests how many times an image has been manipulated and re-saved.
How is it of use to journalists?
Journalists frequently have to verify images and work out whether they have been manipulated. It may be to test whether an image from a press release has been altered, or from social media sources using Twitter and Facebook.
Take the case of a journalist's quest to find the man behind the world's most expensive everything . Stewart Campbell, the deputy editor of Motor Boat and Yachting, set out to prove that a press release claiming the launch of a £3 billion golden superyacht was a fake. Campbell's keen eye led him to the original photo, which he could prove had been doctored. Error Level Analysis would have demonstrated the level of digital manipulation, which you can see by clicking here . <img alt="" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-40469" height="320" src="?cmd=ShowAsset&assetID=43879&nosurround=true&fakeExtension=.jpg" title="Yacht" width="260"> <img alt="" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-40470" height="320" src="?cmd=ShowAsset&assetID=43880&nosurround=true&fakeExtension=.jpg" title="Yacht-analysed" width="260">
The Error Level Analysis site clearly explains how the tool works - and comes with a word of warning about interpreting the results:
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Written by
Sarah Marshall is VP Audience Strategy at Condé Nast. She leads distribution and channel strategy globally. She is also the former technology editor for Journalism.co.uk (prior to it becoming JournalismUK)
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