Have you ever seen a video of Jennifer Anniston sitting in front of the camera, telling people if they click the link in the bio of the suspicious Instagram and put in their extremely personal information, they can win a free iPad Pro? 

If you answered yes, congrats, you saw a DeepFake. 

What is a DeepFake? 

A DeepFake is a clip, video, or photo altered by AI. 

How did DeepFakes start?

The term DeepFakes was coined in 2017 by a Reddit moderator under the same moniker, who founded a subreddit for users to exchange deepfake pornography they had created using photos of celebrities and open source face-swapping technology. 

Who can be affected by DeepFakes? 

Here’s the scary answer… anyone can. 

Anyone who has ever posted their photo or a video of themselves online can be affected by DeepFakes and AI in a negative and potentially life-damaging way. Some of the world’s most famous people have had their turn at being AI-altered to do or say false things 

Some of these people include: 

• Jennifer Anniston
• Steve Harvey
• Barack Obama
• Taylor Swift

The celebrities who were affected by DeepFake have even taken to urging Congress to pass legislation to protect people’s image and likeness from these potentially damaging images and videos

Why should you care about DeepFakes?

Deepfakes can be used to spread disinformation. Disinformation is the spreading of false information, and this can have lasting effects on people who may not have the media literacy to know what they are consuming is digitally altered. 

For extra content on DeepFakes and to learn how to spot AI-altered images and videos, watch the video below for more information.

Sources: 

“Deepfake Technology: What Is It, How Does It Work, and What Can It Be Used For?” BBC Newsround, BBC, 15 May 2024, www.bbc.co.uk/newsround/69009887 Reagan, Gabe. “A Brief History of Deepfakes.” Reality Defender – Enterprise-Grade Deepfake Detection, June 2024, www.realitydefender.com/insights/history-of-deepfakes

Have you ever blamed your phone for your constant scrolling? Have you ever stopped to ask, maybe it’s my fault? Maybe the tech company that designed my phone, tablet, or laptop has nothing to do with my scrolling habits? 

As consumers of technology and media, we often blame the app or the device we are using rather than look inward at our usage and habits. What if the solution to our phone or social media addictions is right in front of us? Literally on the same device we are spending hours a day on? It is important to reflect on that while tech companies manufacture and design the products much like any other product, it is up to us as consumers to decide how much we use them and how they can impact us. 

I also think it’s important as consumers to remember that, at the end of the day, companies are just doing their job, and it’s also up to us as consumers to create and maintain a healthy relationship with these products. Tech companies are also helping us by creating features on their devices to help us develop healthier habits and disconnect. Apple has created a monitoring system that tracks the amount spent on its devices and is even broken down by app usage. Apple also managed to create a more diverse variation of their “Do Not Disturb” feature, which allows the consumer to let certain apps and notifications be blocked for a specific time. When buying a new product from a tech company, we often spend hours or even days researching what the product can do for us, but how often have we stopped and considered how we are using the product?

One of the most important aspects of design is project management. Without proper project management, your entire design process is asking to fail. Whether it’s branding for a client or an entire app mockup, project management is crucial to having a successful experience for both designers and clients or customers. This is why I chose to utilize Asana for all my project management needs.

While there are many project management apps and software to choose from, I chose Asana because it is the most similar to how my brain thinks and processes a task or project at hand. Asana separates tasks into three sections: To Do, Doing, and Done. You can also view the whole project at a glance from the start to whatever your due date would be. I find this extremely helpful, as while I am a person who can focus on one task or issue at a time, I also constantly find myself planning for how to tackle tasks that are coming down the pike. 

If, for some reason, my asana disappeared from the face of the earth, I would still manage my project and tasks in a similar way. Rather than having everything laid out digitally for me, I have three large Post-its or pieces of paper for the To Do, Doing, and Done, and a calendar to be able to break each section of the project down piece by piece to make sure we are managing all areas in a timely manner. 

I’d recommend that anyone looking for project management software first ask themselves how they personally organize their projects and tasks to achieve their end goal- whatever that may be. Then investigate and really take some time with a software that’s navigation feels intuitive to you, and how you would break down in your brain or on a piece of paper.

I chose to give up the news for five days. 

In complete honesty, I had a list of options to pick from: Instagram, Snapchat, TikTok, Facebook, Texting, Phone Calls, or even my phone completely. I chose the news because I at first thought it was what I checked the least, and when I checked it, I was left most of the time feeling overwhelmed and defeated by all that chaos that was going on in the world around and rarely felt relief after checking the news. So I figured, let me use this as an excuse to not feel guilted into seeing what was going on in the world and disconnect for five days. 

Through the five days, I kept notes on my phone of my thoughts, feelings, and times I felt like I wanted to check the news. I started to make discoveries even on the first day of the challenge. Firstly, I realized my pattern that exists between social media and the news. When I would see a story on social media posted by a media outlet, I wouldn’t go to the comment section to see what others were saying about the story; I would want to open Safari and look up the story and gather more information than what the Instagram bio or tweet had provided. Then my next discovery was often that the pattern or habit occurred throughout the days/ week I did the challenge. I will give myself credit as I discovered that I don’t take what I see on social media as the immediate truth or for face value, given the recent issues of fake news and AI on social media. And much to my surprise, my main discovery was how much I depended on the news and staying up to date on the news to feel included or a part of society. 

This challenge ended up being surprising to me, as I discovered that while I originally thought I wasn’t dependent on the news like the people around me. I discovered and realized that I use the news to actually connect with those around me and feel a part of society.