Asking Eric: Cousin's AI manipulation mars treasured family photo

Asking Eric: Cousin's AI manipulation mars treasured family photo describes a dispute over an altered family image. The writer says a cousin sent a group photo taken the morning after their father’s funeral about 30 years ago, showing several relatives in nightclothes before others left. While most faces were unfamiliar, the writer recognized some details and said the image’s standout change was that the cousin used AI to enhance their appearance and make their brother-in-law look more handsome. The cousin denied knowing about the edit and suggested the writer’s mother might have “improved” it herself, though she had died before AI became mainstream. In response, Eric’s column attributes the harm to impact and context, noting earlier tension in the relationship and advising the writer to try to move on while retaining the original human-crafted photo. The second letter begins a separate story about a trip from Greece and related travel planning.