Week 12: Photojournalism: The Best of Both World

 I remember back then when I was a little kid, analog and polaroid camera used to be the 'in' thing before the digital camera took over the  market and now it seems  like a must-have item for an individual. In addition, as technology advanced, software such as photoshop and picasa are easily available for us to upload, save and edit picture digitally and as a result, it makes me wonder to what extent does a picture tell us the truth about certain event or story behind it. In the world of photojournalism, the issue such as the credibility of photograph, distortion of reality, objectivity and the ethics of photograph has been raised. Therefore, in this journal entry I would list out some rules of ethics in journalism which a photojournalist should consider.

1)  Be Precise and avoid sensationalism

Captions and cutlines should be considered so that audience would know what is being represented in the photography. Good caption and cutlines would provide information for audience but it should  not be misleading or sensationalized although it could capture audience's attention.

2) Seek for the truth

Chapnick (1982) advocated that 'Credibility. Responsibility. These words give us the right to call photography rather than a business. Not maintaining that credibility will diminish our journalistic impact and self-respect, and the importance of photography as communication.' This explains the true nature of a job as a photojournalist which is to tell story via photography.

3) Photojournalists must act with compassion and sensitivity

I tend to agree with Garry Bryant ethical approach because as human beings we should consider whether being photographed could bring any psychological effects on the subject. According to National Press Photographers Association's code of ethic, photojournalist should also avoid stereotyping by race, gender, age, religion, ethnicity, geography, sexual orientation, disability, physical appearance or social status.

4) Act Independently

This is one of the code of ethics of the society of professional journalists. I tend to agree with them because one should be free from any association in order to remain professional and have both integrity and and credibility.

5) Avoid manipulation and staging photography

This has been one of the major issues in photography as some of the photo captured are being staged. For instance, it was found that a  photography captured by the Award winning Pulitzer Prize Photographer had been staged in order to draw reader's attention to the story featured on The Sunday newspaper magazine, Parade. Therefore, in order to avoid misrepresentation, one should point out that if a photograph has been staged.

References: 

SPJ Code of Ethics. Retrieved from http://www.spj.org/ethicscode.asp

Lester, P.M., (1999) Photojournalism an ethical approach: Picture manipualtion. Retrieved from http://commfaculty.fullerton.edu/lester/writings/chapter6.html

Stovall, J. (2009). Photojournalism ethics. Retrieved from http://jprof.com/photojn/photojn-ethics.html