Ethics final: photojournalism

Photojournalist: n. a journalist who presents a story primarily through the use of photographs

Detached Professional

or

Or…

Involved Citizen

Was the photojournalist who captured this horrifying moment…

…acting as an involved citizen or a detached professional?

Could he have lent a hand? Put down his camera and choosen the humane, and ethical role of an involved citizen?

Controversy arouse on Tuesday December 4, when the cover of the New York Post featured this haunting image of a New York man, pushed onto the train tracks, right before he was struck and killed. 58-year old, Ki Suk Han stood frozen in the tracks watching a speeding train just seconds away from brutally crushing him.

The caption says it all, this man was “DOOMED” but couldn’t photographer R. Umar Abbasi have done something to help? As Han watched the train, Abbasi watched the tragedy unfold, as a detached professional, through the lens of his camera.

References: • Real photographs taken from Google Images• http://theweek.com/article/index/237337/the

-horrifyingnew-york-postsubway-cover-could-the-photographer-have-rescued-the-victim-from-death

• http://www.nypost.com/p/news/local/picture_of_controversy_A06tIjYbasZpf2RvtNNTxM

• http://hereandnow.wbur.org/2012/12/06/shoutout-controversial-photos