Photojournalism is based on the true story. Ethnic photojournalism provides evidence of the true event. In considering whether is photojournalism is ethnic or not, we have to take 3 aspects into consideration. According to Nigel Warburton, this 3 aspects are “photographic evidence”, “deception” and “how far the slippery slope we have already travelled”.(Matthew Kieran 1998:126-132)
figure 1 figure 2
For example, this photo(figure 1) is one of the most famous manipulated photojournalism in history. It was taken in 1997 after the terrorists killed foreign tourists. If you don’t know it was manipulated, you may find it very impressive. The stream of blood in front of the temple immediately catches readers’ attention and succeeded in arousing their sympathy and pity. However, the original photo(figure 2) shows that that stream of “blood” is actually, water. Regarding the first aspects, is this picture a piece of “evidence”? I don’t think so. Evidence should the proof of a events. But obviously, figure 1 can not tell us the truth. What it can tell us is just that there is a river in front of the temple. In terms of the deception, I thinks figure 1 does deceive the readers. Although what the photographer tries to show is something that actually happen in history, figure 1 fail to witness the truth of the event. Photographer manipulated the original photo in order to magnify the affect of the terror. He did catch the readers’ eyes, arouse their sympathy and pity. But it all happened in an unethical way. In this case, readers’ emotion was manipulated by the photographer as well. Considering the slippery slope, Nigel Warburton says that “it is easy to say on what kind of scale and to what degree such deceptions are currently being perpetrated.”(Mattew Kieran 1998:132) However, I believe we have travel far enough on the slippery slope. If figure 1 does not accompany with the story, we may not have an idea of what it tries to tell us. It can be used for criticizing environmental problem or something else. But if it accompanies with the story, it will definitely mislead the readers’.
Since photographer has the right to tell readers’ truth, what should they do? I agree with Pierre Mignault and Alain Picard’s answers—“they had a moral obligation to abandon their camera and intervene to avert human suffering.”(cited in Valerie Alia 2004, 109) A photojournalism should manage to tell us the truth of what is happening in the world instead of merely giving acuteness of the readers. Photojournalists should use their weapon to help those who are suffering.
1. Mattew K.(1998).Media Ethics. London
2. Valerie Alia.(2004).Media Ethics and social change.Canada:Routledge.pp.109
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