Ethical Judgements in Photojournalism

Hi,

 

I'm a Birmingham University student currently writing my dissertation on the

ethics of photojournalism and I'm interested in finding out how you make ethical

decisions in the field - whether this is based on guidelines given during

training or personal judgement.

 

I'd be extremely grateful for any opinions or examples of occasions when you

have had to make ethical judgements that you can offer to contribute to my study.

 

Many Thanks,

Hannah.

Well, Hannah, as you'll see, that subject <a href=http://www.photo.net/bboard/q-and-a-fetch-msg?msg_id=00Nrm8>can be contoversial</a>. :-)

<p>I think it's important to remember that <b>taking</b> the photo is only a part of the process.  IMO the decision/dilemma <b>really</b> occurs in deciding to publish a particular photo.  My personal approach has been that it's my job to get the photos, and my editor's job to decide which ones to use.</p>

 

<p>Sometimes I'm the both the photographer and editor (for example publishing things in a blog or on-line somewhere).  In that case, I try and make a conscious effort to switch from "photojournalist" to "photo-editor" when I'm assembling the piece.  I regularly refrain from posting explicit photos of accidents (for example) on "general interest" sites because I know that many of the people reading would find them objectionable.  I have no hesitation publishing them in a situation targeted to aviation experts.</p>

 

<p>A specific recent example was a crash at the Oshkosh airshow/convention last summer.  While assembling the story, an editor asked for some photos I'd taken.  In the end, he decided not to use them because they would have shifted the focus of the article away from the other six days of the event and onto what was an unfortunate incident.</p>

Do you have your proposal on-line to explain a little more of your dissertation? There are

many situations street photographers (ok, not photojournalist but similar) get into where they

have to exercise judgement, and occasionally ethics (ok, kidding). It would help if we knew

the type of work, situations or circumstances you're interested in from us. I would be curious

of your research to date, such as bibliography, interviews?, etc. Good luck.

<i>whether this is based on guidelines given during training or personal judgement.</i>

<p>Both. There is a section devoted to the topic in Kenneth Kobre's <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Photojournalism-Professionals-Approach-Kenneth-Kobre/dp/0240804155/ref=si3_rdr_bb_product" target="_blank">Photojournalism: A Professional's Approach</a> but most of it really comes from experience in the field. I could probably give you all sorts of predictable and boring examples but since the presidential race seems to be on the forefront of recent headlines, I'll point you to NY Times photo editor Michele McNally's take on <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2006/07/21/business/media/21asktheeditor.html?_r=2&pagewanted=all&oref=slogin&oref=slogin" target="_blank">presidential stagecraft</a> (scroll down to "Controlling Photographic Coverage").</p>

Try googling Kevin Carter - his Pulitzer-price winning photo of a vulture and a starving child kicked off such a debate in the press a few years ago.

I'm interested in finding out how you make ethical decisions in the field - whether this is based on guidelines given during training or personal judgement.

 

A photographer does not make ethical judgements they record the world as it is warts and all. If we start making ethical judgements then we have to ask who's ethical judgements are we making.....and why would they be superior to someone else's of a different persuasion. Plenty of voices will tell you to use their ethical judgements and the most vocal are the most worrying.

 

Exploitation of subject matter is a different matter.

Scott - "street photography" and photojournalism are not at all similar. A journalist has an

ethical obligation to accurately report the news and has a chain of accountability that

begins with himself, goes through several editors, a publisher and ultimately ends with the

readers. When that accountability is lost, entire media outlets get discredited and people

lose their jobs. Off the top of my head, I can name four journalists (2 photogs, 1 writer

and 1 editor) who befell that fate. Who's gonna take the "street photographer" to task?

I'm not knocking the noble tradition of the Leica, just pointing out that it is primarily an

expressive art, not accountable reporting.

 

Hannah - most of my ethical judgements come at the computer. Drop me an email if

you'd like know more.

 

B

<p>One of the events that strongly influences my philosophy is the assassination of Robert F. Kennedy in 1968.  There's an apocryphal story that Boris Yaro, an "LA Times" photographer, was getting into position to take his photos when another photographer blocked him, saying "Don't take pictures!  I'm a photographer and I'm not taking pictures!" - Boris' response is the now famous: "Goddammit Lady, this is history!".</p>

 

<p>I noticed this theme (and almost exactly those words) are used by <i>Life</i> photographer Bill Eppridge <a href="http://www.nikonnet.com/dyn/articles/article_detail/114.html">in his description of that evening</a>:</p>

<ul>

"It went through my mind not to take the picture, but this was history - that's Life magazine training; it's instinctive.  My other thought was, do I help?  But there were so many people around, they didn't need my help.  I had to do my job."

</ul>

<p>An aside: note the importance of teamwork in Bill's story.  He asks for his film to be pushed one stop, but someone in the lab knew Eppridge generally underexposed so he pushed the processing to two stops and saved the images.</p>

Allen, journalists are bound by the ethical norms of their trade, as are doctors, lawyers,

accountants. Ethics are norms established to maintain the viability and credibility of a group.

What you are talking about is moral judgment, the internal code that determines individual

behavior.

 

The NPPA's Code of Ethics is the de facto ethical standard of working PJ's:

 

http://www.nppa.org/professional_development/business_practices/ethics.html

Our primary role is to report visually on the significant events and on the varied viewpoints in our common world. Our primary goal is the faithful and comprehensive depiction of the subject at hand...link

 

A photographer does not make ethical judgements they record the world as it is warts and all....Allen.

 

The poster also asked about " when you have had to make ethical judgements"

"Our primary goal is the faithful and comprehensive depiction of the subject at hand"

 

I agree 110%. This is an ethical standard.

 

Again, you are confusing ethics and morals.

 

Our published work should reflect of the ethics of the profession. Any journalist (print or

visual) must constantly assess whether her/his actions conform to the profession's

governing ethics. When you are on assignment and are looking for the "varied common

viewpoints", those are ethical judgements.

 

I personally have made images that I felt were morally ambiguous (perp walks, spot news),

but it was my obligation to make them. I feel terrible about it, but, ethically I was obliged

to make them because it is my job to fully inform the community.

Well, perhaps the question confuses ethics and morals, but isn't the decision as to how an ethics standard applies to a particular situation one of individual moral judgment? That's why violations of codes of ethics are considered crimes of moral turpitude.

Hannah:<br>Hi,<p><i>I'm a Birmingham University student currently writing my dissertation on the ethics of photojournalism and I'm interested in finding out how you make ethical decisions in the field - whether this is based on guidelines given during training or personal judgement.</i><p>Hi Hannah,<br><p>As a PJ, you get paid to shoot, not editorialize (judge). It is not your (our) call to make ``ethical`` <u><i>judgments</i></u>. Your photo editor has that decision.<br>Your (our) job is to shoot and report what we see and can capture.<p>We PJs have an obligation to fulfill our assignments to the best of our abilities, even to the detriment of our own ``ethics``. <p>Even if the assgnment is a self-assigment, you must not believe yours is the eye to edit your own work.<br>Applying your (our) own ethics shortcurcuits the system.

Lots of good responses. In response to Brad's, "Scott - "street photography" and

photojournalism are not at all similar.", yes, they're different, but there is some overlap

and not all photojournalists, who also do street photography, aren't associated with

publications (as the NYT photo editors cite their photographers). Many are freelance or

paparazzi, and work under who's oversight?

 

I'm not disagreeing with you, and it's my shortsightenedness to make them so similar. I

will say, however, that many street photographers, who also work as freelance

photojournalists, have ethical and moral values on par with photojournalists, so they don't

deserve to be discounted or discredited, because they don't have oversight. They may by

themselves or by those who's work they want to market their photographs.

 

Good discussion.

At one point in my career as a free lance photojournalist I had to make a choice I could either block (or at least slow down the escape of someone who had been slugging a cop or just let him run by me and continue to take photos of his escape.

 

You are in England right? Find Donald McCullin and ask him. Also ring the London office of Magnum and tell them what you are up to and see if they can find a photo editor and a few photographers to speak with you.

 

Ethics are defined by the circumstances in which you have to make a choice. but more deeply your ethics were being instilled in you long before pick up a camera.

"they record the world as it is warts and all"

 

The context of the photograph is also very important, since cropping can be done both at the editor's desk and in camera which can drastically change the meaning of the photograph.

(OP)

Hi again.

 

Thank you all for your responses so far. As you know, I?m presently writing my dissertation on the ethics of photojournalism, but more specifically I?m aiming to find out whether or not ethical guidelines you may have been given (during training or by an employer, etc) are realistic if you find yourself in a situation where ethical judgements need to be made. Or whether, on the other hand, you find that ultimately your decisions are based on personal (moral) judgements.

 

I haven?t responded up until this point as I?m conducting original research and I do not wish to influence the discussion with my own personal views.

 

I would also like to thank those of you who have offered references and links to websites, these have been very useful.

 

Kind Regards,

Hannah.

For a very personal view on a photographer and his methods, also of his level of interaction try "James Nachtwey: War Photographer"

 

http://www.amazon.co.uk/War-Photographer-REGION-1-NTSC/dp/B0000C825I/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=dvd&qid=1200311247&sr=8-1

(OP)

 

Ellis, you gave an example of when you had to make a choice about whether or not to intervene in a situation. This is exactly the kind of decision I'm interested in. You don't need to disclose what you decided to do but I'd be very interested to know what you based this decision on.

 

If anyone else has any further examples or opinions to offer that would be great! The discussion has certainly been very interesting so far.

 

Thanks, Hannah.