An AI-generated image of the Rafah tent camp has gone viral on social media channels this week, garnering far more attention in a short period of time than any other recent photo of Rafah or Gaza.
For example, on social media Instagram, the picture has already been published more than 40 million times this week.
In the picture, snow-covered mountains surround tents standing in neat rows. The light tents form the words All Eyes on Rafah in the middle of the picture, or loosely translated as “All eyes on Rafah”.
Visual politics researcher at the University of Helsinki Taina Meriluoto according to the spread of the image created by artificial intelligence worldwide, above all, it tells about how the aesthetics and rules of social media platforms control what the conflict looks like in our eyes.
– Instagram is a visual platform. There, they play by the game rules of the platform’s aesthetics. The AI’s image of Gaza is pleasing to the eye and fits neatly into the image stream, unlike real photos of Gaza. The image of artificial intelligence therefore fits well with our ideas about what kind of content can be published on social media, says Meriluoto.
asked Instagram users on social media for their thoughts on the All Eyes on Rafah picture. More than 300 responses came in about a day. Many said they recognized the image as made by artificial intelligence.
Some Instagram users called the photo beautiful, interesting and dramatic. Still others saw the image made by artificial intelligence as bad and of poor quality.
According to the researcher, it is typical of modern times that political discussion focuses on images and their meanings.
– Pictures are also used to make politics and they create new layers in the public debate. Sometimes, however, pictures can distract from the issue itself.
In the video below, you can see what the Rafah refugee camp actually looked like after the Israeli airstrike on Monday:
Generative artificial intelligence can destroy the value of a documentary image
Artificial intelligence’s interpretation of Rafah caused a wide range of emotions in Instagram users.
Some were happy that so many people dare to take a stand on the situation in Gaza. Still others wondered why so many people wanted to share an artificial intelligence image made by an unknown entity, when the Palestinians themselves have published many photos from the Gaza Strip on social media.
Meriluoto has an answer for that.
– Concern about artificial intelligence images is also related to a dystopian image of the future, where generative artificial intelligences are so advanced that they can be used to create images that are indistinguishable from a real photograph. It would completely destroy the documentary value of the photo, and we would no longer know what and what to believe, says the researcher.
During the Gaza war that began on October 7, Instagram became an important channel for Palestinian journalists and activists to convey the plight of Gazans.
The most popular journalists and activists reporting on Gaza are followed by millions of people, even though Meta, which owns the service, has reportedly censored images depicting the distress of the Palestinians and political statements related to the Gaza war in violation of community rules.
For example, an American TV channel NBC’s according to the photos and videos published on Monday of Israel’s attack on the Rafah refugee camp have been censored on Instagram as too violent.
According to the researcher, the image created by artificial intelligence seems to have bypassed the limitations of Meta’s algorithms, which may partly explain its popularity.
There is a glaring contradiction between the artificial intelligence image and the real war imagery
On Instagram, some users expressed concern over whether the AI image distances the viewer from the suffering of Palestinians and trivializes the dangerous work that Palestinians and journalists do.
On the other hand, many reported that the news images caused anxiety, which the artificial intelligence image did not.
– The image created by artificial intelligence may be more pleasant for some viewers than the real images of Gaza, which are graphic and often show violence, states Meriluoto.
However, he considers it problematic if social media rules guide users to show things in a pleasant way.
– At worst, it only enables even more terrible cruelty, because it cannot be documented and shared and shown to other people.
An easy path to activism
Many Instagram users who responded to ‘s survey were annoyed that otherwise politically inactive people take a stand on the situation in Gaza when there is an easy opportunity to do so.
In addition to ordinary people, many public figures such as the former prime minister of Finland Sanna Marintop model Bella Hadidsinger Dua Lipaan American actress Aaron Paul have shared an All Eyes on Rafah photo via Instagram’s story feature this week.
– Public figures with millions of followers are certainly also aware of the power of their own platform, and may want to use it to present a political position. On the other hand, political activism can be used to increase one’s own visibility.
Meriluoto sees that it is easy for both ordinary people and public figures to take a political stand if it fits their image flow.
– It’s a kind of light activism. By sharing a photo, you can feel like you belong to this community, says Meriluoto.
Some Instagram users reported that they had considered sharing the photo on their social media, but hesitated. Others thought it was brave to express their position on the war in Gaza on social media.
Instagram users said that the image spreads awareness, community and shows the power of the crowd.
The researcher sees that something good can come from sharing an image made by artificial intelligence.
– As light as this image is, it has now perhaps also reached those people who otherwise do not choose to see political content on their own social media.
According to Meriluoto, it is a good thing if the image created by artificial intelligence arouses people’s curiosity about the situation in Gaza and makes people acquire more information on the subject.
Another good consequence can be questioning the power of social media companies and discussing who manages the content that people see.
On Friday, a new All Eyes on Rafah photo started circulating on social media. This time the text was placed on a photo showing Palestinian and white body bags. As of Friday morning, the photo had been shared over a million times on Instagram.