A Necessary Evil

There are two sets of questions that run through my head when I deliberate whether or not I would run this photograph, most of which were covered in class last week:

1) Does running the dead marine photo add something to the story? Is it aesthetically or emotionally compelling? Is it a particularly good time to run it?

2) How much harm or damage does running this photo cause? And who takes the biggest hit? How much do we care about that person or group’s feelings/opinions?

In regards to the first set of questions: despite the fact that this particular photo probably isn’t going to win a Pulitzer Prize, it remains a powerful image. Partly because images of such serious context are powerful regardless of their quality, and partly because it serves as a potent reminder of how deadly the month of August was in Afghanistan. No matter if we like it or not, humanity—both as a whole and as individuals—responds so viscerally to images that they are almost unparalleled when it comes to getting a point across. In this situation, that point is the danger of war, and that is pretty heavy symbology.

There certainly is a price to pay for publishing such a controversial photo, however. While I suppose it’s plausible that some families would not object to allowing the AP to run a photo of their dead son, I would guess that most people would say no. If that is true, how would we ever see images that show the tolls of war? I agree with whoever in class wrote that this is a necessary evil. You better believe I wouldn’t want it to be my kid’s photo published, but that’s good old-fashioned human hypocrisy for you: often what benefits society is not the same as what benefits the individual.

As for the government, I have very little sympathy for them as a stakeholder. Perhaps I’m just jaded, but Robert Gates couching his anger in sympathy for the family’s wishes smacks of political sneakiness. I place my bets on the fact that he doesn’t want the media adding to public outrage about the war after such a deadly month in Afghanistan.