Images have always been complex and unruly elements: difficult to examine, to critique, and very open to different meanings. Still, images have often been treated as persuasive, honest representations of reality. AI now holds a magnifying glass to this issue, as convincing pictures can be created without cameras and any connection to the physical world. Generative AI is thus an opportunity to discuss larger questions: What happens to authenticity when we cannot “trust our eyes”? How should we look at images? How can we boost visual literacy, which has become a core skill for navigating current media environments? This talk focuses on how Generative AI highlights an essentially old problem—but in a new, urgent way.
| When? | 12.05.2026 16:00 - 17:00 |
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| Where? | PER 21 E230 Bd de Pérolles 90, 1700 Fribourg |
| speaker | Prof. Dr. Katharina Lobinger Università della Svizzera italiana (USI)
Katharina Lobinger is Associate Professor at the Institute of Digital Technologies for Communication at USI Università della Svizzera italiana. Her main research interests include visual communication, online communication, ethics for the digital age, creative and visual research methods, and open data practices. Katharina Lobinger is currently president of the Swiss Association of Communication and Media Research (SGKM, SSCM, SACM) and editorial board member of the open access journal SComS - Studies in Communication Sciences. |
| Contact | Mobiliar Center for Resilience Diana Ingenhoff diana.ingenhoff@unifr.ch |
