Photojournalism often puts a face on the story and documents the circumstances. The bar for manipulating a news photo is so incredibly high that I cannot remember an occasion when it was justified. But rather than default to altering the image, in the spirit of recording the truth of the circumstances, the journalist might first look for another image that conveys a comparable moment without jeopardizing an individual. Photojournalists - and their news organizations - certainly can consider genuine concerns for the safety of a person in an image. And now, much of the day's events qualify as historic moments.īlurring images is a form of photo manipulation that makes them less true, and is generally an unacceptable practice for documentary photography. NPR is committed to journalism, and that includes chronicling news as it happens and in public. Part I: NPR should not institute a policy of obscuring the faces of people photographed while participating in public demonstrations who do not give express permission to have their picture published. Otherwise, make sure that you have the photo subjects' consents to post their photos and put them at risk, and preferably include a notice of this consent in all of your photo/video captions." " I urge NPR to take down the photos of protesters or blur their likenesses entirely.
By posting photos that expose their faces and identities, you're putting individuals at risk of retaliation, both from racist people online and stronger governmental forces."Īnd Leah Block wrote: " Do not forget the Ferguson protesters who died under "mysterious circumstances" - Deandre Joshua, Darren Seals, MarShawn McCarrel, Edward Crawford Jr., Danye Jones (whose mother was an active protester), and Bassem Masri. Vivien Manning wrote to us: " Protesters across the country are risking their lives to fight against police brutality and murder. Newsrooms everywhere are facing similar requests. These requests have come into the Public Editor inbox, and we've been tagged in conversations on social media. Click here for information on this office.
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