Egypt's President Leads Mideast Talks? Doctored Photo Says So

In this image altered by Egypt's state-run newspaper al-Ahram, Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak leads Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, President Obama, Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas and King Abdullah II of Jordan toward the East Room of the White House for statements on the first day of the Middle East peace talks Sept. 1, 2010 in Washington.

/ Al-Ahram

The state-run newspaper in Egypt has been heavily criticized for doctoring a picture creating the illusion that its country's president, Hosni Mubarak, was leading the Middle East peace talks that began in Washington earlier this month.

The newspaper, al-Ahram, published a picture of Mubarak leading President Obama and the leaders of Israel, Palestine and Jordan to a gathering of reporters in the East Room of the White House Sept. 1, the British Broadcasting Corp. reported.

(See the doctored photo at left)

Pictures actually taken that day show Mr. Obama leading Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas and King Abdullah II of Jordan down a red carpet with Mubarak bringing up the rear.

Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, President Obama, Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas and King Abdullah II of Jordan walk toward the East Room of the White House for statements on the first day of the Middle East peace talks Sept. 1, 2010, in Washington.

/ Getty Images

(See the actual photo at left)

Al-Ahram replaced the altered image on its website with another picture from the peace talks, the BBC reported. BBC couldn't reach the newspaper's officials for comment.

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[redwillie]

It is obvious to some why they doctored this. In the original picture, the Egyptian president is walking behind the Jew. You can't have him walking behind a Jew. He has to walk in front of the Jew. This is just an example of the petty way many people think in Egypt, and the catty ways they express it.

[tsigili]

You cannot believe any image you see today. 95% of everything is doctored in some way or another.

[askagain]

You are correct. At one time, photographs did not lie. Today, computers allow us to manipulate the images. As a magazine publisher, we once removed a stop sign from a photograph we were using. We felt that the stop sign detracted from the beauty of the photograph. Many years ago, I saw a movie where a surveillance tape showing a murder was altered so that authorities could not identify the murderer. This was the first time that I realized that a photo could be manupulated. On the other hand, not all manipulations are bad. It often depends on the situation.