Social Responsibility in Photojournalism

Social Responsibility

Social responsibility is an ethical ideology or theory that an entity, be it an organization or individual, has an obligation to act to benefit society at large.

What are some examples of social responsibility?

Social Responsibility

Examples: * Lewis Hines and Jacob Riis - Child Labor http://xroads.virginia.edu/~ma01/davis/photography/home/home.html

* Bruce Davidson - The Civil Rights Movement - http://www.flavorwire.com/249320/10-essential-civil-rights-movement-photographers#1

http://www.magnumphotos.com/C.aspx?VP3=CMS3&VF=MAGO31_10_VForm&ERID=24KL53ZTH6

* William Burroughs - Vietnam

* James Nachtwey - Crimes Against Children/Rwanda http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W_vXfW94Xkc http://www.ted.com/talks/james_nachtwey_s_searing_pictures_of_war.html

Social Responsibility

Examples:

* Sebastio Salgado - http://www.unicef.org/salgado/ http://www.ted.com/talks/

sebastiao_salgado_the_silent_drama_of_photography.html

* Mathew Brady/ Timothy Sullivan - Civil War photography www.civilwarphotography.org

* Dorothea Lange- The Great Depression http://www.livinghistoryfarm.org/farminginthe30s/water_14.html

Issue Reporting Today http://www.poyi.org

Issue Reporting Today

Pictures of the Year International is a photo contest that focuses largely on news reporting from the past year.

Often some of the most important social issues are highlighted in the contest. Look over the news categories and identify what social issues are being addressed.

What is the purpose of reporting on social issues?

What is the purpose of reporting on social issues?

Creating Activists Through Journalism! Activism consists of efforts to promote, impede, or direct

social, political, economic, or environmental change. Activism can take a wide range of forms from writing letters to newspapers or politicians, political campaigning, economic activism such as boycotts or preferentially patronizing businesses, rallies, street marches, strikes, sit-ins, and hunger strikes. This is what Lewis Hines acheived when he helped eliminate child labor.

Issue Reporting

What is an issue?

Issue Reporting Issue or crisis reporting most often means

photojournalists are covering local or global issues that affect human rights or the environment.

Below is a link to some award-winning issue and crisis reporting photography.

http://www.poyi.org/70/winners.php

https://www.nppa.org/spotlight/109

Issues With Ethics When journalists are covering human rights

issues, ethics can often come into play.

What are ethics? 1. A system of moral principles: the ethics of a culture.

2. The rules of conduct recognized in respect to a particular class of human actions or a particular group, culture, etc.: medical ethics; Christian ethics.

3. Moral principles, as of an individual: His ethics forbade betrayal of a confidence.

Issues With Ethics When is it okay to take photos of someone who is dead?

When is it okay to take photos of someone being physically abused?

When is it okay to photograph harm being done to a child?

When is it okay to photograph someone who is starving?

When is it okay to photograph someone who is mourning the death of a loved one?

When is it okay to photograph a funeral?

When is it okay to photograph criminal behavior?

When is it okay to photograph sacred religious rituals?