These pixels aren’t perfect

Airbrushed photos of magazine models might not keep their seamless perfection for long if a group of British and French lawmakers have their way, the New York Times reported Sept. 28.

The group is proposing magazine advertisements with retouched pictures of models should carry a disclaimer stating exactly what has been altered in the creation of the image. Violators would face fines up to 50 per cent of the cost of an ad, or close to $55,000.

Lawmakers are concerned magazine images challenge women’s self-confidence and fuel eating disorders because the altered pictures project an unattainable standard of beauty.

It’s commonly understood models don’t look perfectly airbrushed in reality, but sometimes we need to be told the obvious for extra emphasis.

Bringing awareness to feats of Photoshop is a step in the right direction, but the proposed photo labels likely won’t change much in the fashion industry. Our society’s obsession with thinness is too deeply ingrained to solve with a mere disclaimer.

Like warning labels on cigarette packages that have little effect on those already addicted, photo disclaimers aren’t likely to affect the choices of women who struggle with eating disorders.

The business of fashion photography relies on selling images people want to see. When consumer psychology demands a slim, streamlined ideal of beauty, the media will deliver. Without a larger social and educational movement to shift our perceptions of beauty, regulation labels won’t have much impact.

Introducing disclaimers lets the fashion industry keep going down the same path while feeling better about it because they’ve slapped on a warning label.

For models who already question their body image, having every digital alteration listed in the corner of a magazine ad is an embarrassing way to draw attention to perceived flaws.

In a world where retouching magazine models is standard practice, the fashion industry would find a way to do their work even with a disclaimer.

Banning digital alteration is an impossible ideal that would stunt fashion photographers’ art. But European lawmakers’ look into its implications is a valuable step towards a larger awareness of body image—although not a final solution. It’s an issue that demands more discussion, and one that becomes dangerous when the dialogue stops.

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