Day By Day Cartoon


Monday, April 10, 2006

First, do no harm

Look, I understand times are hard in the photo-j biz. I used to be one myself.

But inaccurate reporting is worse than no news at all.

The photo agencies are in a difficult position. Western customers demand a constant stream of photographs from dangerous locations around the globe, said Emmanuel Dunand, AFP's bureau chief in New Delhi, but threats from terrorists or insurgents against Westerners often force the agencies to rely on local stringers to get those images. The pressure on these photographers can be very great, said Dunand, a native of France. "The entire population there says, 'Yes, this is an American shell that landed,' and this guy is being paid $5 a photo and will not go deeper, and he sends the photo with total faith."


Ummn, how about putting in embeds reporters again, or this that too blindingly obvious?

1 Comments:

At 9:15 PM, Blogger Doug Adamavich said...

What would be nice it to have somebody on staff who served in the military. Or maybe pay some retired military cat who has a sharp set of eyes. Of course, you could call upon a slimy civilian like me who actually knows the difference between an artillery shell, a bomb, and a Hellfire missile.

Nah, that would take effort and thinking. Plus the facts would get in the way. You know, let's just scratch that idea.

 

Post a Comment

<< Home