Since Osama bin Laden is allegedly still "out there", the FBI decided to try and make a digitally altered image of bin Laden that would look more like him now. Unfortunately, they decided to use Spanish Politician Gaspas Llamazares' photo. The photo was posted on the Rewards for Justice website. The FBI has issued an apology, saying it wasn't their usual method. There is still a picture of bin Laden on the website with his usual turban, but the one of him without the turban (the one that used Llamazares' features) has been taken off the website.
Great, another blow to the American Defense image. Here's another blog that posted the aged pictures of bin Laden. They show the image of bin Laden without his turban.
If I remember correctly, the program that the FBI uses takes features from random faces and fits them together to give an approximation of how someone would look like at a certain age. I think, to avoid something like this happening in the future, they should try to not include images of diplomats...just in case.
Sunday, January 17, 2010
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4 comments:
I don’t think that this Spanish politician should be too offended. It’s not like he is being called a terrorist or anything. It’s just that the FBI thought that his facial features could help make an accurate creation of what Bin Laden might look like right now. In my opinion, the FBI should not have released info on whose face it used to make the image.
I read the first two sentences and ...
*facepalmed*
Absolutely pathetic ...
I agree with Omid. Just because he has similar facial characteristics that the FBI deemed useful to adapting bin Laden's image does not make him a terrorist. I'm sure it must be rough to be associated with bin Laden in even the slightest way, but I think this might be an overreaction or is over-analyzing the situation.
-Derek White
Although I don't think that the FBI intended for their using the Spanish politician's photo to be an insult (or maybe they did...probably not), I can still see how the Spanish politician would be pretty offended. Bin Laden is one of the most wanted person on the US' wanted list (and perhaps some other country's). Even though using the facial features doesn't imply anything, I'm pretty sure that the Spanish politician might still get some ridicule. At least by some ignorant people.
-Henry Zhang
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