The Effect of Photojournalism on the

World

By Tasneema Sobhany 10-2Mark Wolov

How does photojournalism affect the world?

In photojournalism, we are given “unprecedented power and

indisputable information about the world in which we live”

In 1963, a Buddhist monk in Vietnam decided to burn himself to death while he was meditating in front of a crowd.

He sacrificed his own life just to protest against religious prosecution.

Would you ever go to that extent to get your message out to the world?

The day President John F. Kennedy saw the picture, he remarked, “no news picture in history has generated so much emotion around the world as

that one”Copies of the photo were sold on the

streets in Europe. Millions of copies were distributed in Communist China

as evidence of “US Imperialism”

A Sudanese child tries crawling to a UN camp over a kilometer away. A

vulture waits for her to die so it can eat her.

This photo became popular practically overnight.

The photographer won a Pulitzer prize.

Kevin Carter, the photographer, was attacked by millions of people for not

helping the little girl.

Three months later, he committed suicide because he was haunted by

the famine.

On June 5, 1989, a Chinese man in Tiananmen Square, Beijing, stood in front of a line of tanks, preventing

their advance.

This picture spread worldwide, and he became known as one of the 100 most influential people of the 20th

century.

With a single act of defiance captured on camera, this lone Chinese hero

revived the world’s image of courage.

A missionary goes to Uganda in April, 1980.

Everyone already knows about the famine in Africa, but seeing

something like this with your own eyes brings you to reality.

A South Vietnam national police chief executes a suspected Viet Cong member on February 1, 1968.

This is the photo that most influenced people’s opinion on modern warfare.

This shocked America into a lot of anti-war enthusiasm.

A gorgeous 12 year old girl stands in a cotton mill in Vermont, where she

works all day.

Although child labor is not present in America today, we know that child labor is very common in developing

countries. Knowing that America once used children for work is

devastating. This is one of the many photos that

convinced America that Congress should pass child labor laws.

Photojournalism serves as an instrument for democracy and

justice. It can implement violence and oppression, but it also gives a

nobody a voice.It plays havoc with power by making a

gesture speak a thousand words.

Photojournalism goes beyond conveying a mood, it inspires people

to act.“Justice can draw its sword in the time

it takes an eye to scan an image.”