She denounces a sexist cliché.
Georgie Purcell, a member of the upper house of the parliament of the state of Victoria (Australia), was outraged to see one of her photos retouched by the Australian television channel 9News.
In the photo since posted by the MP on her X account, we see a montage comparing the original photo to its version modified by the Australian media.
On the latter, we can see that the size of her breasts has been amplified and that the top of her dress has been shortened, revealing part of her stomach.
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“I went through a lot yesterday.
But seeing my body and outfit photoshopped by a media outlet was not on the agenda,” Georgie Purcell commented on X. “Note the enlarged breasts and shorter outfit.
I can’t imagine this happening to a male MP,” regrets the MP.
I endured a lot yesterday.
But having my body and outfit photoshopped by a media outlet was not on my bingo card.
Note the enlarged boobs and outfit to be made more revealing.
Can't imagine this happening to a male MP.
What gives?
pic.twitter.com/NhnkDRMidc
— Georgie Purcell (@georgievpurcell) January 29, 2024
9News Melbourne apologized “unreservedly” on Tuesday for altering the parliamentarian’s photo.
TV director Hugh Nailon said the channel's image department had found a photo online of the MP which was to be used to illustrate an article on duck hunting, Georgie Purcell being a Justice Party MP. animal feed for northern Victoria.
The media accuses Photoshop, Adobe denies
“As is customary, the image has been resized to fit our specifications,” Hugh Nailon said.
“During this process, Photoshop automation created an image that did not conform to the original photo,” he defended, referring to the American photo editing software.
“This did not meet the high editorial standards that we apply and we apologize unreservedly to Ms Purcell,” he said, referring to a “graphic error”.
The company Adobe, which publishes the photo editing software, however contradicted this explanation.
“Any changes to this image would have required human intervention and approval,” an Adobe spokesperson said in a statement to Australian media.
Jacinta Allan, the Prime Minister of the state of Victoria who also appeared in the graphic without being photoshopped, said the incident was concerning, according to the Guardian.
“This is no way to represent a woman, much less a woman who holds a position in public service, represents a community and participates daily in public debate.
Let’s think about the message this sends, particularly to young women,” she told reporters.