The World Press Photo Contest Technical Report is misleading when it comes to their investigation with regard to Hossein Fatemi’s case. The report states “… Lyon was dealing with primary sources, in contrast to Talaie’s collection of secondary accounts.” This is inaccurate and unnecessarily misleading. It leaves the impression that World Press Photo (WPP) is using this language to alter the facts. What do they mean by “primary sources” versus “Talaie’s … secondary accounts?” The same language was used by WPP’s officials on social media. I would expect that WPP, as a credible journalistic institution, to revise their report and investigation.
This year the jury of the World Press Photo (WPP) awarded Iranian photographer, Hossein Fatemi, the second place for his long-term project titled ‘An Iranian Journey.’ Many who have directly interacted with Fatemi in Iran, Afghanistan, and other places consider his conduct unethical and ridicule his work as staged photojournalism.
When Hossein Fatemi’s images of his homeland, Iran, triggered official denunciations, he went into exile. He did not, however, stop trying to help young Iranian photographers document their homeland.
Hossein Fatemi’s photos of Iran provide an unvarnished and intimate view of his homeland. His project “An Iranian Journey,” which was published on Lens in 2013, earned Mr. Fatemi the World Understanding award in the Pictures of the Year International contest last month.