In 1861 William Mumler claims to capture a spirit of dead on camera and offers grieving people the chance to sit with a lost loved one, one last time.

These controversial photographs unleashed a debate about the nature of reality and truth and marked a cultural moment which questioned whether what we see can really be believed.

But is this a new problem? Are deepfakes forcing us to examine the same questions today?

On this episode of Bad People, Sofie Hagen and Dr Julia Shaw discuss dystopian futures, deep fake technology, the uncanny valley, false memories and ask whether the law can really keep up.

CREDITS

Commissioning Executive: Dylan Haskins

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