Images in Crisis

Images in Crisis examines how visual media shape our understanding of global events and explores whether images can still be trusted in an era of digital manipulation, misinformation, and AI-generated content. This book offers a clear framework for understanding today's crisis of visual trust, organized around four key challenges: misinformation, uncertainty, the action gap, and synthetic images. Through case studies of the Gaza War, the January 6 Capitol attack, and extreme weather events, it shows how images are mobilised during crises but also become subject to growing doubt and suspicion. Readers will learn how images influence public knowledge, democratic debate, and political action, and discover practical ways to maintain trust in an increasingly contested media landscape. Drawing on research from media studies, visual culture, journalism, political communication, and AI, the book provides essential tools for navigating and critically evaluating visual media today. This book is essential reading for scholars and students in media studies, visual culture, journalism, political communication, and digital humanities. It will also appeal to journalists, policymakers, fact-checkers, and media professionals working with visual verification and media trust. Anyone interested in media literacy, AI's impact on visual culture, or how images shape public discourse will find this book valuable.