Special Effects
Experts Say Fake OBL Tape Fairly Easy To
Make
By Steven Morris The Guardian - London 12-16-1 The White House yesterday came under
pressure to give more details of the video which purports to
show Osama bin Laden admitting his part in the September 11 attacks.
There was growing doubt in the Muslim
world about the authenticity of the film while special
effects experts said computer technology made it possible to
fake such a video. Unless the US gives more information about how
the tape was found or provides more technological details about it,
doubts are bound to linger.
On the face of it the video is the
"smoking gun" that proves Bin Laden's part in the murder of more
than 3,000 people in the World Trade Centre and Pentagon attacks.
President Bush yesterday called it a "devastating declaration of guilt for
this evil person".
The 40-minute poor-quality tape,
apparently shot with a camcorder, shows Bin Laden telling a
visiting Muslim cleric details of the planning for the attack
and his delight in the carnage.
According to US officials the tape was
found in a house in Jalalabad, eastern Afghanistan, and
handed to the Pentagon by an unnamed person or group.
Officials say Mr Bush first watched
the tape in November but release was delayed until it could be
authenticated.
Independent translators were used to
make sure the US could not be accused of twisting the words of
the men on the film.
But for many the explanation is too
convenient. Some opponents of the war theorise that the Bin Laden
in the film was a lookalike, others claim images of him had been
manipulated.
It was also pointed out that it was
surprising that a man with the ability to organise the attacks
on America would be naive enough to confess on
tape. And some observers point out that Bin Laden appears
to be wearing a ring on his right hand. In previous
film of Bin Laden released by him, he has worn no jewellery apart
from a watch.
Riaz Durrani, a spokesman for Jamiat
Ulema-e-Islam, which spearheaded pro-Taliban rallies in
Pakistan, said: "This videotape is not authentic.
The Americans made it up after failing to get any evidence
against Osama."
Legal experts in the US said that
prosecutors seeking to bring Bin Laden to justice would certainly
be keen to produce the tape but might struggle to prove
its authenticity.
Henry Hingson, a former president of the
national association of criminal defence lawyers, said: "In this day
and age of digital wizardry, many things can be done to alter its
veracity."
On the other hand it would be foolish to
fake a video confession, knowing that if Bin Laden is ever
tried his defence team will have experts pore over the video.
Sean Broughton, director of the
London-based production company Smoke and Mirrors and one of Britain's
leading experts on visual effects, said it would be relatively easy for a
skilled professional to fake a video of Bin Laden.
The first step would be to transfer
images shot on videotape on to film tape. Distortion or "noise"
and graininess would be removed. A "morphing would then be used to
manipulate the image on a computer screen.
Using such a package it is possible to
alter the subject's mouth and expressions to fit in with whatever
soundtrack is desired. The final step is to put the "noise" and graininess
back on and transfer the doctored images on to videotape.
In a recent advert that Smoke and
Mirrors made for a US insurance company, the technique was used
to place Bill Clinton's head on an actor's body for
comic effect.
Mr Broughton said that while it would be
relatively easy to fake a Bin Laden video, to fool the top experts was
much more difficult. "There are perhaps 20 people in America who would
be good enough to fool everybody. To find someone that good and make
sure they kept quiet would probably be pretty difficult."
Bob Crabtree, editor of the magazine
Computer Video, said it was impossible to judge whether the
video was a fake without more details of its source. "The
US seems simply to have asked the world to trust them that it is
genuine."
Mr Bush said it was "preposterous for
anybody to think this tape was doctored".
He added: "Those who contend it's a
farce or a fake are hoping for the best about an evil man. This
is Bin Laden unedited. This is... the Bin Laden
who murdered the people. This is a man who sent innocent
people to their death."
The foreign secretary, Jack Straw,
insisted there was "no doubt it is the real thing".
|
<<attachment: the_difference.jpg>>