Category: Ethics

Photographer Fired by AP Says Decision Was Fair, But Process Wasn’t

Photographer Fired by AP Says Decision Was Fair, But Process Wasn’t | PDNPulse

Freelancer Narciso Contreras, a talented war photographer who was cut off by Associated Press last week after he admitted he had Photoshopped a news photo, told PDN in an e-mail interview that he accepts his punishment, but said, “I’m critical when it com

via PDNPulse: http://pdnpulse.pdnonline.com/2014/01/photographer-fired-by-ap-says-decision-was-fair-but-process-wasnt.html

I do accept to break up the working relationship between them and me if I broke the rules, but the public punishment seems more like an exhibit of power in order to protect its own interests.

January 27, 2014
Some thoughts on photojournalism ethics today

Link: Ethics Matters » Confluence of ethics matters

My question is this – if the photos are works of fantasy, why should we believe the words? If we can’t believe the photos of Lena Dunham why should we believe the story that accompanies them? If the words are expected to be accurate, shouldn’t the photos be accurate also?

January 27, 2014
I hate Buzzfeed.

Link: I hate Buzzfeed.

Between the stolen images, vapid content, lame jokes, recycled memes and desperate assimilation of all things pop culture, I feel like I’m dealing with a cultural hydra

January 26, 2014
Truth and Consequences for a War Photographer

Truth and Consequences for a War Photographer

The Associated Press has severed its relationship with Narciso Contreras, a Pulitzer Prize-winning photographer, for digitally altering a picture, an ethical lapse with severe consequences.

via Lens Blog: http://lens.blogs.nytimes.com/2014/01/24/truth-and-consequences-for-a-war-photographer/

During an interview yesterday, he was apologetic but not defensive. “I made a horrible mistake and I accept full responsibility for it,” he said. “I’m ashamed about that, but I’m not ashamed about doing what I believe is my duty: showing the suffering of the Syrian people caused by the war.”

January 24, 2014
Thou shalt not lie

Link: Thou shalt not lie | Thoughts of a Bohemian

What we cannot stand is the act of deception. The perceived impression that someone is deliberately lying to us and trying to deceive us. It is not tolerable in real life, even less in photojournalism.

January 24, 2014
AP sacks Pulitzer winning photog. Zero tolerance or zero intelligence?

AP sacks Pulitzer winning photog. Zero tolerance or zero intelligence? — duckrabbit

The Guardian is running the following story about AP photographer Narciso Contreras being hung out to dry for photoshopping an…

via duckrabbit: http://duckrabbit.info/blog/2014/01/ap-zero-tolerance-or-zero-intelligence/

“I took the wrong decision when I removed the camera … I feel ashamed about that,” he said. “You can go through my archives and you can find that this is a single case that happened probably at one very stressed moment, at one very difficult situation, but yeah, it happened to me, so I have to assume the consequences.”

January 23, 2014
AP Severs Ties with Photographer Narciso Contreras Over Photoshopped Image

AP Severs Ties with Photographer Narciso Contreras Over Photoshopped Image | PDNPulse

Associated Press (AP) has severed ties with freelance photographer Narciso Contreras for altering a news photograph he shot in Syria, the wire service has announced. Contreras was part of a team of AP photographers that shared the Pulitzer Prize last year

via PDNPulse: http://pdnpulse.pdnonline.com/2014/01/ap-severs-ties-with-photographer-narciso-contreras-over-photoshopped-image.html

Contreras was part of a team of AP photographers that shared the Pulitzer Prize last year for coverage of the Syrian civil war

January 23, 2014
AP Photographer Alters Syria Photo to Remove … a Camera! — Worth Considering a Little Deeper

Link: AP Photographer Alters Syria Photo to Remove … a Camera! — Worth Considering a Little Deeper — BagNews

Beyond the transgression, isn’t it ironic Contreras was done in by a camera?

January 23, 2014
Charleston Gazette: Our photographer was wrong to obscure TV station’s mic logo

Link: » Charleston Gazette: Our photographer was wrong to obscure TV station’s mic logo JIMROMENESKO.COM

A Gazette photographer went outside the boundaries of our standards when he obscured the name of a television station on a microphone in today’s front-page photo. Other than the photographer, no one at the Gazette was aware of what had taken place with the photo

December 3, 2013
Epic Chinese Photoshop fail of officials visiting elderly residents

Link: China mocked over massive Photoshop failure of officials visiting elderly residents | Technology | Tech News and Latest New Technology | | thetelegraph.com.au

In the picture, the officials look massive while Mrs Cheng looks smaller than a child.

To make matters worse, one of the mens’ legs haven’t even been properly erased giving the impression they are floating above her.

October 31, 2013
Stock Spot News Photos on Breaking News Stories

Link: Screenshot Saturday: Stock Spot News Photos on Breaking News Stories

the apparent decision to have a photo for every story is resulting in stock photos showing up on breaking news stories they have nothing to do with

October 12, 2013
The Sad Tale of Jasmine Star and Doug Gordon

The Sad Tale of Jasmine Star and Doug Gordon – PhotoShelter Blog

Update 10/12/13: Jasmine Star has posted an apology on fstoppers. There are few photo conferences where the enthusiasm is palpable – where everyone from the doe-eyed to the veteran clamors for pearls of wisdom from an accomplished speaker roster. That’s t

via PhotoShelter Blog: http://blog.photoshelter.com/2013/10/sad-tale-jasmine-star-doug-gordon/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+PhotoshelterBlog+%28PhotoShelter+Blog%29

But over the past few weeks, her integrity and authenticity have come into question as allegations of plagiarism in her writing and tweeting have surfaced in some pretty unambiguous ways. These revelations come on the heels of similar findings in the writings of Doug Gordon, another workshop rockstar.

October 11, 2013
World Press Photo to change contest rules following post-processing controversy

World Press Photo to change contest rules following post-processing controversy

Earlier this year, World Press Photo was forced to re-evaluate the integrity of its winning image following false allegations of forgery leveraged against photographer Paul Hansen. While a panel of forensic analysts found that the image had not been digit

via British Journal of Photography: http://www.bjp-online.com/british-journal-of-photography/news/2298433/world-press-photo-to-change-contest-rules-following-post-processing-controversy

World Press Photo, who has selected VII Photo co-founder Gary Knight as chair of its 2014 contest, has announced a change of rules regarding “the permissible levels in post-processing of image files” submitted following this year’s intense debate about manipulation in photojournalism

October 3, 2013
Minority retouch: Digital post-producers stand by their practice

Link: Minority retouch: Digital post-producers stand by their practice – British Journal of Photography

In the firing line since the recent World Press Photo controversy, digital post-producers are striking back, defending their work as well as their ethics. Olivier Laurent talks to 10b Photography and Addretouch

September 6, 2013
A Swing And A Hit (And A Miss)

A Swing And A Hit (And A Miss)

When New York Yankee Ichiro Suzuki swung at a pitch and connected with his 4,000th career base hit during the first inning of a home game against the Toronto Blue Jays on August 21st, it was a record-making moment worthy of the cacophony of motor-driven c

via NPPA: https://nppa.org/news/swing-and-hit-and-miss

Wait … What? The photographers who worked the Yankees game and who saw or heard what happened during the Suzuki hit were perplexed. How did she get this picture? A few compared Debby Wong’s image their own pictures and to others. The background looked different, one said. The swing and follow-through didn’t look quite the same, another photographer said

August 31, 2013
A Creepy Video That Shows How Easily Protest Photos Can Be Staged

A Creepy Video That Shows How Easily Protest Photos Can Be Staged

Think the above photo is showing a violent protest in the Middle East? Think again. The photo is in fact a screen grab from a video showing just how

via PetaPixel: http://petapixel.com/2013/08/09/a-creepy-video-that-shows-how-easily-protest-photos-can-be-staged/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+PetaPixel+%28PetaPixel%29

The video below, captured by Elbadil TV, shows this fake protest shoot in action. Unfortunately we have no context regarding the “protest” itself — it could be a legitimate propaganda photo-op or simply a group of students showing how easily these things can be faked — but the creepy result speaks for itself:

August 9, 2013
Should Reddit Be Blamed for the Spreading of a Smear?

Should Reddit Be Blamed for the Spreading of a Smear?

When the Sunil Tripathi rumor went viral after the Boston Marathon bombing, it laid bare the dysfunctional codependence between new and old media.

Link: http://www.nytimes.com/2013/07/28/magazine/should-reddit-be-blamed-for-the-spreading-of-a-smear.html?partner=rss&emc=rss&_r=0&pagewanted=all

The general refrain from the journalists who helped propagate the misinformation went something like this: Breaking-news reporting has always been chaotic, and it’s more so now because the overall volume of misinformation, loosed by millions on Reddit and Twitter, has ballooned out of control. Andrew Kaczynski of BuzzFeed wrote a morning post-mortem on the site, along with a colleague, Rosie Gray, who had also tweeted about Sunil Tripathi. Neither mentioned their own involvement in spreading the wrong name, and Kaczynski has since deleted his incriminating tweets.

July 25, 2013
New research suggests it’s possible to automatically identify fake images on Twitter

Link: New research suggests it’s possible to automatically identify fake images on Twitter | Poynter.

July 5, 2013
Men identified as ‘Bag Men’ sue the New York Post

Link: Men identified as ‘Bag Men’ sue the New York Post | Poynter.

Salaheddin Barhoum and Yassine Zaimi filed a defamation suit

June 6, 2013
A Photographer, A Fixer, the New York Times and Child Servitude in Haiti: A Story Gone Haywire, then Simply Gone

A Photographer, A Fixer, the New York Times and Child Servitude in Haiti: A Story Gone Haywire, then Simply Gone – Reading The Pictures

A post about child servitude in Haiti, deleted from the New York Times Lens Blog, serves as the basis for questions about the ethics of photojournalism, the practice of online journalism and the issues involved when the American media market trains a lens

via Reading The Pictures: http://www.bagnewsnotes.com/2013/05/a-photographer-a-fixer-the-new-york-times-and-child-servitude-in-haiti-a-story-gone-haywire-then-simply-gone/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+Bagnewsnotes+%28BAGnewsNotes%29

The day after the Lens post appeared, the “English teacher” identified in the post, Lesli Petit-Phar, posted an open letter on another photographer’s Facebook thread. In it, Petit-Phar acknowledged his role as the guardian of Judeline, but professed shock and outrage upon seeing himself portrayed as the slave master of Judeline

May 30, 2013