#6 - Jonas Bendiksen (Magnum Photos) on AI, fake news and the Book of Veles

In 2021, Magnum photographer Jonas Bendiksen published a photo book that looked in every way like classic photojournalism. He waited for someone to notice that something was off. That moment never came. Not a single critical comment, not even from his own colleagues at Magnum. The Book of Veles tells the story of a Macedonian town that made money from fake news during the 2016 US election, but the people in the photos didn't exist. They were computer-generated. Jonas kept the hoax going for six months and eventually had to create a fake profile himself just to set his own unmasking in motion.In this conversation we talk about how Jonas grew up in Tønsberg, why he joined Magnum Photos in 2004, and why he moved his family from Manhattan to a small community in Norway to protect his creative process. We also talk about the panic behind The Book of Veles, why he refuses to keep working in the AI space even though it would be the smart commercial move, and what he thinks photography can offer that AI cannot replace.In this episode:Why Jonas made a fully fictional photo book with AI-generated images and let his own peers believe it was real journalismHow he had to plant a fake profile to force his own hoax into the openWhy he believes photography's problems started long before AI, and what he means by "we photographers have always been the biggest machine learning system of them all"Why he moved his family from Manhattan to a small village in NorwayWhy fixing his sailboat means just as much to him as taking picturesAbout Jonas Bendiksen Jonas Bendiksen began his career at nineteen as an intern at Magnum Photos in London, before leaving for Russia to photograph the fringes of the former Soviet Union. He joined Magnum Photos in 2004 and has worked for Geo, Newsweek, Vanity Fair and National Geographic. With The Book of Veles he created one of the most talked-about experiments at the intersection of photography and AI. He lives in Norway with his family, splitting his time between commissions, personal projects and his sailboat.LinksJonas Bendiksen at Magnum PhotosThe Book of VelesThis episode is brought to you by Camera Nu. They think along with you about the right equipment for your photography, from a new lens to a camera you can rely on during a client shoot, and always give honest advice. Listeners of De Donkere Kamer get 10% off with code DDK10 at cameranu.be.In this episode, Kaat also shares the five patterns she keeps seeing in photographers who keep growing, patterns she has picked up through the podcast, her masterclasses and her 1:1 mentoring. She walks through all five in a free webinar, with concrete ways to apply them yourself. You can sign up here.