We are told that some of the fireworks that viewers on TV saw of the Beijing Olympics opening ceremony were fake. Since it would be risky for a helicopter to be up there, shots were simulated on computer, and that was what was presented to viewers.
As long as it is understood that what was going on was entertainment, as in the movies, and not news, using props is OK. But not otherwise.
I can see the US Dept of Defence saying - since sending reporters and photographers to the war front is risky, we are justified in presenting simulated photographs as reality.
Enahncing fireworks digitally for entertainment was fine but the shameful part was that they did not let a 7 year old, very talented girl on stage becasue she was not cute enough. So, they brought a prettier girl on stage to lip sync.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/asiapcf/08/12/oly.kids/index.html
Yes, I was going to write about it. Hindi movies do it all the time, so maybe life is becoming a movie.
ReplyDeleteToo bad we can't pick and choose what things in life are (and are not) to remain in reality. Then we could round up all of life's unpleasantries and toss them into cyberspace -- freely us to enjoy only the pleasures in life.
ReplyDeleteOn second thought, though, I'm afraid this sort of mindset is commonly shared by too many people in power, either from the public or private sector, leading them to truly believe that things, such as money and war, are nothing more that things to manipulate with computers. So I'd like to think that once money and war was put back into reality, where they belong, then maybe, just maybe, crimes involving money and war will finally come to an end...
I still think it was unethical. Even though it was entertainment, this was a real international event, and it should have been made clear to the users.
ReplyDeleteAs for fake war pictures, we already have fake reason to go to war, so...
Speaking of life-becoming-a-movie, I can't help but be reminded of this ominous quote from the Bush administration:
ReplyDelete"We're an empire now, and when we act, we create our own reality. And while you're studying that reality -- judiciously, as you will -- we'll act again, creating other new realities, which you can study too, and that's how things will sort out. We're history's actors...and you, all of you, will be left to just study what we do."