Photojournalists Covering Traumatic Events

The article, The difficulty of documenting a tragedy, discusses the challenges photojournalists face when covering tragedies and disasters. The author, Thulasi Kakkat, notes that most journalists have no training in saving lives or rescuing people during emergencies. Yet they are compelled to rush to the scene of accidents and calamities to document the events unfolding.

At the site of a disaster, a photojournalist is expected to remain objective and convey the reality of the situation through images, even though they may be confronted with disturbing and emotional scenes. The article cites the example of a photojournalist who covered a building collapse in Kerala, India, where several construction workers were trapped and injured. The journalist wanted to get an image of the workers caught under the debris, but felt conflicted about his responsibility to simply document versus intervene to help.

Kevin Carter lived this conflict. His photograph of a dying child, The Vulture and the Little Girl, won the Pulitzer Prize while at the same time he was vilified for not helping the child. Soon after receiving his Pulitzer, and suffering from depression, he committed suicide. The ongoing debate is: Should he help? Some questioned why he didn't put down the camera and help the child. Or, should he remain objective? Others argued that he should remain an objective observer.

The article delves into the psychological impact on journalists who cover traumatic events. It notes that the sense of detachment photojournalists may acquire over time is a complex issue - it is unclear whether this detachment is real or simply a coping mechanism. The author reflects on their own experiences covering floods and landslides in Kerala, where the scale of the tragedy was overwhelming. They grappled with the question of whether the journalist's role is merely to record the events or to also intervene and provide assistance.

The difficulty of documenting a tragedy, by Thulasi Kakkat. In: The Hindu, 13 December 2024

The article also discusses a specific incident in June 2024, where more than 45 people were killed in a fire in a building in Kuwait. The author vividly describes the harrowing scene, including the grief of the victims' families and the lingering sense of shock. The article emphasizes that while photojournalists may go back home after covering a tragedy, the images they capture serve as an "irrefutable truth" of what occurred, and they must consider the ethics and responsibilities involved in their work.

Comments

Visual Analysis: SEMIOTICS

Visual analysis is a systematic and scientific approach to examining visual materials that goes far beyond casual observation. In our visually saturated world, images have become a inescapable universal language that shapes our perceptions, attitudes, and experiences. From the artworks adorning gallery walls to the advertisements lining city streets, visuals communicate narratives, evoke emotions, and reflect sociocultural ideologies. However, the process of seeing and interpreting visuals is not as spontaneous or natural as we often assume. As John Berger notably stated, "seeing is an active decision," suggesting that the process of interpreting visuals is neither spontaneous nor natural, but rather requires conscious effort and critical thinking. The way we perceive and interpret visual content is heavily influenced by habits, conventions, and our individual perspectives. Serious visual analyses requires conscious effort and critical analysis to unravel the laye...

The Brown Sisters: A Four-Decade Portrait of Time and Sisterhood

Nicholas Nixon's "The Brown Sisters" stands as one of photography's most compelling longitudinal portrait studies, documenting four decades of sisterhood through annual black-and-white photographs taken from 1975 to 2014. Using an 8×10 inch view camera, Nixon captured his wife Bebe and her three sisters—Heather, Mimi, and Laurie Brown—in the same order each year, creating a remarkable visual meditation on time, aging, and familial bonds. For the full set of images see the PDF below (for academic use only) Forty Portraits in Forty Years PDF What began as a spontaneous family photograph in 1975 evolved into a profound artistic documentation of human transformation. The project's strength lies in its methodological consistency: the sisters maintain their positions, with the sequence remaining unchanged throughout the series. This rigid framework paradoxically highlights the subtle changes that occur year by year, creating a powerful commentary on the passage of time...

Mass Media: Platforms and Content

Mass Media today is interplay between technological infrastructure and creative expressions. Mass media, defined as channels of communication designed to reach large audiences, has undergone profound transformation in recent decades. What began as predominantly print-based communication has expanded into a multifaceted ecosystem encompassing visual, audio, and interactive modes of engagement. This essay explores the dialectical relationship between media platforms and content, arguing that the two elements exist in dynamic tension—with platforms shaping content possibilities while content innovations drive platform evolution. As Marshall McLuhan famously observed, "the medium is the message," suggesting that the vehicle of communication fundamentally alters how we perceive and process information. This principle remains relevant as we navigate an increasingly fragmented media landscape characterised by both institutional and user-generated content. The Architecture of Mass M...

A Critical Visual Analysis of Jan Banning's ‘Bureaucratics’

Jan Banning's photographic series Bureaucratics offers a remarkable anthropological study of civil servants across eight countries, revealing how power, hierarchy, and cultural identity manifest in governmental spaces. Through meticulously composed photographs taken from a citizen's perspective, Banning unveils the theatre of bureaucracy the most immediate visual impact comes from Banning's consistent methodology: each photograph is taken from the same height and distance, positioning the viewer in the role of a citizen approaching the bureaucrat's desk. The bureaucrats are photographed in their natural habitat – their offices – which become stages where power dynamics and cultural values are performed daily. Make visual analysis of Bureaucratics by Jan Banning given below. Bureaucratics by Jan Banning PDF (for academic use only) In examining the spatial arrangements, a clear pattern emerges: the desk serves as both barrier and symbol of authority. In many image...

Visual Culture

Visual culture is a multifaceted field that examines the pervasive role of visuals in shaping human understanding, beliefs, and behaviours. It posits that visuals are not merely reflections of reality but rather "constructed realities" that actively influence our perception of the world. At its heart, visual culture positions visuals as the reference and data for knowledge, beliefs, thinking, creations, behaviour, etc.; which in turn further shapes current beliefs, thinking, creations, behaviour, etc. Visuals are images/collection of images that are made to be seen. Framed (made) and put out. This highlights that visuals are not spontaneous occurrences but deliberate constructions, detached from the place and time in which it first made its appearance, says, John Berger. Examples like the contrasting Newsweek and TIME magazine covers of O.J. Simpson illustrate how different framings of the same event can convey distinct messages and narratives, underscoring the idea that w...

Pope Francis—Fully Human and Fully Pope

Pope Francis led the Church with the authority and obligation of a co-pilgrim. He became the conscience of the Church. Long before Pope Francis fell ill and the Catholic world began talking about what is next and who is next; while Pope Francis was still making waves of change in the Catholic and non-Catholic world, I heard men of the Church judging him, saying he needed to be a little more careful, tactful, and diplomatic; take time to speak and act—meaning to be conservative and moderate like the Church almost always has been. The pressure on Pope Francis was that he must restrain from saying things that would make him and the Church look weak, vulnerable, and human. I was of the opinion that the authority and influence of a Pope, the vicar of Jesus, who sits in a pompous cathedra is to be enduring even at the point of embracing vulnerabilities, and not run away; be comfortable with others and varied perspectives; face discomfort, sweat, anger; laugh at power; and 'have the smel...

Visual Analysis: INTRODUCTION

Visual analysis is a systematic and scientific examination of visual materials that explores their communicative meaning, aesthetic qualities, and functional impact. As Susan Sontag noted, humans tend to linger in "mere images of the truth," making it crucial to develop a deeper understanding of visual interpretation. Study the PDF below (for academic use only) Introduction to Visual Analysis PDF The Nature of Seeing: The process of seeing is not as spontaneous or natural as commonly believed. According to John Berger, our way of seeing art has historically been influenced by privileged minorities to maintain social and economic dominance. Visual perception requires conscious effort and is heavily influenced by habits and conventions. The visual faculty consumes approximately two-third of a person’s used energy, highlighting its significance in human experience. The Framework of Visual Analysis: Visual analysis could be traced back to communication models, for example, Har...

photo.graph.art.design

Search This Blog