I've always hated when even real images are used to promote something, but the image is unrelated. Example: a horrific image of a smashed car to show the result of drunk driving or phone use but where that wasn't the actual cause of the crash in the picture. Claiming "this is a result of xxx" is a lie. There are plenty of real cases out there so if you're making stuff I can't trust you - particularly for those asking for donations.
Like, I agree, but at some level I’d actually rather see a fake picture of a drunk driving crash (or no picture) and know this is what the aftermath might look like but nobody died in this particular shot.
For drunk driving in particular, the pictures typically come from the police and aren’t exposed or composed with an artistic purpose. The opposite is true for a bunch of the famous pictures of poverty; these are composed for their (often powerful) emotional effect. Whether it’s a good thing or not, I can imagine that being able to add a little of the art direction after the fact to drunk driving photos might be tempting, i.e., having some control over angle & exposure, and maybe avoid gore in the shot…
"If your'e making stuff up I can't trust you - particularly for those asking for donations" Exactly. AI doesn't have much to do with it other than it makes it easier to make stuff up. Someone using AI images to solicit donations is just grifting like any other liar asking people for money.
So now they use AI imagining stuff...