A Photo really is worth a 1,000 words. Photographs are some of the most powerful, most influential and most memorable forms of media that exist today, especially in news media and journalism. Thousands of images are used daily to help communicate stories, even to the point where a body of images can tell a complete story in and of themselves.
A single image has the power to motivate a person or even an entire nation; an image can inspire or offend countless people more so than the most eloquently written news story. Kenneth F. Irby from the Poynter Institute states that “ photojournalism…is universal and transcends cultural and language bounds”(Burkholder). Due to the fact, however, that these photojournalistic images are so powerful, they tend to be at the center of many ethical media issues.
With such a powerful tool in their hands, photojournalists have a responsibility to be sensitive, considerate, and to portray the story as accurately as possible to the public. History needs to be recorded and the camera lens is the eyepiece through which it is recorded. More often than we like events in history are offensive and insulting, gruesome and graphic, repulsive or embarrassing. The question is then, should such controversial and shocking images be published in the media?
Publishing Controversial Images
Cons
On many occasions the printing of an image is controversial because of how it affects the public or the individuals that are closely associated with the subject of the image. A published image can invade a person’s privacy, damage a reputation and embarrass, or cause pain and suffering to remain with individuals long after a tragic event has occurred.
Such was the case with a photo of a fireman carrying the lifeless body of young boy who had been trapped in a burning house. The photo was published in the Detroit Free Press. Readers complained that the picture was disgusting, sickening, and inappropriate. “The paper was accused of overstepping the bounds of good taste. Joan Byrd, a Washington Post ombudsman summarized his argument: “The family should not have to see news photos of a family member killed in an accident or a crime. Families of victims have said that years later something haunts them every single day: The picture of the body at the scene [or] the description of the person in the newspaper…” (Kobre). This debate of journalism ethics is called absolutism…if the picture hurts just a few relatives and friends, it is wrong to run the picture because the media must protect those few from more pain (Kobre).
In addition to causing embarrassment or pain to individuals by publishing graphic or controversial images, often times these images divert attention away from the real message of the story. Detroit Free Press columnist Susan Watson explained that the [above] photo is “a chilling reminder of the ungodly price we pay when we take risks with our children…. It screamed, loudly and rudely, that we have to stop endangering our loved ones to protect our belongings.” (Kobre). However, 50% of the readers of the Detroit Free Press complained about the image, focused on criticizing the paper and as a result overlooked the story’s important message (Kobre).
Pros
Unlike the “fireman image”, many controversial images strongly influence the public for good. A photo of a boy who had drowned lying partially exposed in a body bag surrounded by his grief-stricken family members was printed in the Bakersfield Californian. The paper received 400 phone calls, 500 letters, and a bomb threat; however, the number of drownings in the Bakersfield area dropped from fourteen in the previous month to just two in the month following the photo’s publication (Blumenkrantz)
.
Photographer Stanley Forman took a photo of a woman and child falling from a collapsing fire escape on the side of a building—the women died but the child miraculously survived. The photo was printed on more than o
ne hundred front pages across the country. Later, phone calls rang in accusing the papers of sensationalism and insensitivity all for the purpose of selling more newspapers. Newspapers today are subscription based do not have much to gain from one day sales increases. Furt
hermore, as a result of the image, improvements were made regarding fire-safety laws in Boston (Blumenkrantz).
Newspapers and magazines that chose not to publish such controversial images can be accused of whitewashing the truth or not portraying the even accurately. During the events surrounding September 11, 2002 a photo was taken of a man plunging to his death from one of the twin towers. Some editors felt that this im
age was too graphic and should not ran as a front-page image. Eric Meskauskas, director of photography for the tabloid New York Daily News thought differently as he states, “…an incredibly disturbing thing happened and that is the truth of the matter… (Hanson). Victims jumping to their deaths…” was part of the story and we shouldn’t shield our readers from it.” (Kobre).
Controversial Images Should be Published
The law does not forbid any photographer from taking controversial photos such as the ones mentioned above, so it is left to the photojournalists and editors to be sensitive and ethical in their decisions to run controversial photographs. "Images affect memory, and behavior, and values. Images affect what you believe about yourself, about others, and about the world out there…” (Winslow). Due to the strong impact of photojournalism, journalists and photojournalists alike need to guide their
decisions by the basic principles of journalism—truth-telling, serving the public interest, acting responsibly and being accountable (Burkholder).
I believe the greater good should be sought after. As a photojournalist myself I can speak from personal experience and say that if publishing a controversial image will bring about the greatest good for the greatest amount of people, than that image should be published.
It is interesting to note that the majority of photojournalists who win Pulitzer Prizes and other international competitions are almost
always witness to excruciatingly painful human tragedies (Paul Martin Lester). So why do these images win Pulitzer Prizes? They win Pulitzer Prizes because they are powerful images that evoke emotion, they carry with them an inherent call to action, which is made manifest through the viewer and they bring change to society and bring the greatest good to the greatest amount of people.
Controversial images have brought about awareness and change to social issues around the globe for decades now. In response to the starvation in Somalia, Africa U.S. troops were sent over as peacekeepers. While there Paul Watson photographed a U.S. soldier that was killed and dragged through the city streets by cheering Somalia crowd. The picture was so shocking to the American public that it quickly
reversed policy and pulled U.S. troops out of Somalia.
One of the most memorable images of all time is Dorothea Lange’s “The Migrant Mother.” The mother in the image later suffered a stroke and her family could not pay her medical expenses. Nevertheless, because of the po
pularity of the image and how people were touched by it, people from around the country donated over $15,000. Thompson complained that Lange received fame for the picture while she lived in relative poverty, but ultimately the photograph saved Florence Thompson’s own life (Lester).
Sometimes, those who feel they could be directly harmed by the publishing of a controversial image realize recognize the greater good and encourage the printi
ng of an image. Kenneth Kobre in his book Photojournalism: The Professional’s Approach gives the example a photo of an accident victim killed by a drunk driver. Ultimately the photo will raise awareness of the dangers of drunk driving.
Controversial images have the ability to impact the world for good as has been demonstrated by numerous examples mentioned above. This influence for good comes from the truth that is captured in these photos. As people are shown how things truly are in the world than they can make accurate decisions accordingly. If we whitewash the stories in the news by not publishing the images that are valid, newsworthy, and truthful than the public cannot be shown how to help in bringing about the greater good.
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