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DonaldWeberwroteanessayinMarch2015onthestateofphotojournalismtoday.WeberisaWorldPress
PhotojurorandamemberofVIIAgency.DespitetheproblemsWorldPressPhotohashadinrecentyears,it
remainsaveryprestigiouscompetition.
Intheessay,Weberlamentedthedeathofphotojournalismhasheknewitandashelearnedit.Andheis
correct.
TheNewYorkTimesLensblog,inOctober2015,postedapieceoutliningthatstagingorfakingof
photojournalisticimagesiswidespread.Thebloghashadotherarticlesdiscussingthedecliningethicsin
photojournalism.Thevideoofaphotographerinstructingalittlegirlhowtoposeintheaftermathofthe
Brusselsbombingshasfurthercalledintoquestiontheethicsandqualityofphotojournalismtoday.
InNovember2015,Reuterssentanotetofreelancersannouncingachangeinpolicy.Theservicewouldno
longeracceptimagesconvertedfromRAWfiles.Goingforward,freelancerswereonlytosubmitimagesthat
hadbeencreatedasJPEGsincamera.Reutersnotedtworeasonsforthechange.Firstwastimeliness.The
feelingbeingthatanincameraJPEGwouldrequirelesspostprocessing,wouldbeabletobetransmittedto
theorganizationmorequicklyand,thus,madeavailableforlicensingmorequickly.Thesecondstatedreason
wastotrytominimizetheincentivetoworkonimagesinpostprocessinganddothingsthatwereunethical
likecloning.
WecandebatethevalidityofeitherofthesestatedreasonsandIcouldprovideamplerationaleforwhyneither
isausefulchange,inparticularthereasonsurroundingethics.Therealissuehowever,isthatReuters
recognizesaproblemandistryingtodosomethingaboutit.
Inthe24/7newscycleweareenvelopedbytoday,mediaoutletsareclamouringforcontentandincompetition
foreyes.Eyesmeanadvertisingdollars.Withoutthatrevenuestream,themediaoutletcannotsurvive.Thenet
resultisthatsensationalismhasbeensubstitutedfornews.Thedemand,then,fromphotojournalistsisforthe
mostextremecoverage.Thebiggestfire,themostunrulycrowd,thepoliceengagedinthemostviolent
actions.Whenanewsworthyeventhappenssomewhereontheglobe,mediaoutletsdescendlikevultures
ontocarrion.Theysaturatetheirairwaves,websitesandpageswithwordsandimagesdesignedtokeepyou
rivetedtothetelevisionscreenorbuyingthenextdaysnewspaper,ormaybeevenclickingoneoftheadson
thesite.Insomecasesitharkensbacktothedarkdaysofthelate1890swhenyellowjournalismruledthe
headlines.Itisunseemly.Itisbase.Itisovertlypresenttodayasitwasthen.Todaywecallitlinkbaitorclick
bait.ThesensationalheadlineintendedtogetyoutobuyoneofHearstsorPulitzersnewspapersisnowthe
sensationalheadlinethatisintendedtogetyoutoclickonthelink.BreakingNewshasbecomesooverused
atermthatonewondersifanyonereallypaysattentionanylonger.AndaccordingtotheNewYorkTimesblog
postmentionedabove,ifrealitydoesntmeettheneedsthen,apparently,creatingrealityhasbecome
commonplace.
ThroughoutthesepagesIhavespokenofcontextandthelackofrealityinphotography.Theseproblems
becomeevenmoreexaggeratedwhenthosepayingfortheworkofphotojournalistsonlywantthemost
intenseandcontroversialimagery.Theabilityofphotojournaliststotellstoriesisdiminishing.Yes,thereare
someexcellentessaysbeingcreatedbyphotographers,butfewerthaninthepast.APulitzerwinningphoto
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essaybyBostonGlobephotographerJessicaRinaldiisanexampleofthegoodphotographybeingmade
today.MSNBChasasectionofitssitededicatedtophotographyandlongformphotoessaystorytelling.
Photojournalistsareforcedtoeliminatethecontextandshowonlytheworstofwhatishappeningina
situationorcreateitifitsnotbadenough.Inhisessay,WeberusedtheexampleofdemonstrationsinKiev,
Ukraine.Hewasseeingimagerythatmadeitappearthecitywasundersiege.Hecontactedfriendswholived
inKievandwasrelievedtofindthatthedemonstrationsanddamagewereconcentratedtoasmallsectionof
thecity.HewenttoKievhimselfandworkedtoshowthatlifewasotherwisenormal,despitethissmallareaof
disruption.Toprovidevaluablecontext.Toshowtherealityasmuchaspossible.
Icanarguethatthisisnotanewphenomenon.Ascher(Arthur)Fellig,betterknownasWeegee,workedasa
streetphotographerandcrimescenereporterinNewYorkCityduringthe1940sand1950sandhewasan
inveteratecropper.Hewouldremoveallextraneouselementsofaphototoconcentratetheviewersattention
directlyatwhathewantedyoutosee.Felligmightarguethatthelimitationsofhisequipmentrequiredthis
approach.Heworkedwitha45presscamerahavinga127mmlenssettof/8andafixedfocusdistanceof10
feet.Illgrantthatthiscould,insomecases,meanunwantedorextraneousnoisecreptintotheframe,buthe
stillcroppedlikecrazy.Healsostagedsomeofhisphotosbutthatisamatterforanotherdiscussion.Itdoes
however,provideanhistoricalcontexttotheNYTLensBlogarticlereferencedabove.Recallthemaximof
beingdoomedtorepeathistoryifwedonotrespectit.
Itdoesnothelpthatpublicationswhichwere,atonetime,dedicatedtotheartofthephotoessayhave
disappearedaswell.LifeMagazineperhapsbeingthemostnotable.Overthecourseoftime,someofthe
mostaccomplishedvisualstorytellersworkedforLife.NameslikeCapa,Bresson,BourkeWhite,Eisenstadt
andSmith,amongmanyothers.
Streetphotographersare,inthiscurrentenvironment,uniquelypositionedtodowhatphotojournalistscannot.
Streetphotographerscantellthestories.Canprovidethemissingcontext.Canshowthebiggerpicture.Can
takethetimetobringthelargerrealitytotheworld.
Newmedia,socialmedia,isapowerfulnewtoolforphotographers.Atleastitcanbe.Muchdependsonhowit
isused,ofcourse.Usedasatooltochallengetheincreasinglynarrowlyfocusedpicturepresentedbythe
mainstreammediaoutlets,itcanbeespeciallyinfluential,compellingandpersuasive.
Whowillbethevisualstorytellersofthe21stcentury?WhowillbethenextLange,FeiningerorBurnett?Street
photographersarewho.Byusingsocialmediatocultivatecontactsandhelpeachotherspreadthestories,a
neweraofthevisualstorytellingcanbeborn.Therearestockagenciesthatallowuserstosellstreet
photography.Someevenallowfortheuploadofspotnewsphotoswithinashorttimeoftheeventhappening.
Theblinderswornbythetraditionalmedia,andasaresultimposedonthoseconsumingmediacontent,can
betornoffandpeoplecanbeallowed,again,toseewhatishappeningintheirworld.Contextcanbebrought
backtothestoryand,asmuchasispossible,therealityofwhatishappeningcanbeshownwhether
positiveornegative.Howwillyoumakethatdifferenceandcausethatshiftinperceptionvs.reality?
Thiswillrequirephotographerstousenewandsocialmediawiselyandforpositiveendgoals.Not,asso
manydo,chasingthe21stcenturyphenomenonofInternetfauxcelebrity.Toomanybelieve,incorrectly,the
ideathatviralityissynonymouswithvalidity.Toomany,andsadlyaretoooftenprovedtrue,believethatifthey
selfproclaimgreatnessoftenenoughandloudlyenough,peoplewillbegintobelieveit.And,asweknow,
somewill.Selfpromotionnow,toooften,replacesactualtalentandability.Lookmoredeeplyhowever,and
thecrackswillbegintoemerge.Rubalittleharderandtheveneerbeginstowearthrough.Wecantake
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comfortintheknowledgethatthesecharlatansdonottypicallystayaroundlong.Whencalledupontobackup
theirblusterandbravado,andshowingtheycannot,theyfallquicklybythewayside,cedingtheconversation
totherealstorytellers.
NoramIreferringtobeingprolific,orpopular,onInternetphotographydiscussionfora.ThoseLordofthe
Flieslikeenvironsarenomeasureofquality.
WhatIamtalkingaboutisconsistentlyproducingqualityworkthatcompelsviewerstolookandwanttolook
more,towanttoknowwhatishappening,towanttounderstandthecontextinwhichthephotoexists.Imagery
thatengrosses,informsandenhancesknowledge.Imagerythatmakespeoplestopandthink.Thatcompels
themtoseewhatishappeningaroundthem.Notrelyingontheuseofheavyfiltrationordigitaldarkroom
trickerytomakeanimagelookedgyorcool.LikebadHDR,thesekindsoflipstickonapigeffortsdonot
withstandthetestoftime,donotcompelviewerstowanttoknowmore,arenotdestinedtobeviewedwithany
seriousnessfiveyearsfromnow,nevermind10,or20,or50,or100.
Thereare,mostcertainly,someimpedimentstothestreetphotographer.Shecannot,attimes,getaccessto
locationsthatcredentialedphotojournalistscan.Therearealsoadvantages.Beinglocal,thestreet
photographerknowshowtonavigateaplaceandblendinwiththepeople.Knowshowtotalktothelocalsand
gettheirstory.Togetneededbuyinandparticipation.Thesearethingsthatfewphotojournalistscandoas
wellespeciallytodaywithdistrustofthemediaatsuchahighlevel.Thealmostnaturaldistrustofthemedia
thathasdevelopedinmorerecentyearsisapointofleveragethestreetphotographerhas.Thatdoesnot
meanthestreetphotographershouldexploitthatadvantagetothedetrimentofthesubjectsorthestory.Doing
sowouldbringthestreetphotographerdowntotheleveloftheothermedia.Ratherthestreetphotographer
shouldusetheiraccesstoshinelightonwhatotherwisewouldnotbeseen.Totelltheuntoldorunseenstory.
Toprovidethenecessary,andotherwiselacking,context.
Whilethismayseemlikeawholesalecondemnationofthemedia,thatisnotmyintention.Traditionalmedia
hasbeenunderpressurefromcablenewsorganizationsforyears.Now,thosecablenewsoutletsareunder
pressurefromincreasinglyfractiousorganizationsthatprovideveryslantedandbiasedcoverage.Eventhose
areunderpressurefromInternetonlypublicationsthatcanbemuchmorenimbleandresponsivetochanging
stories.Whattraditionalmedia,particularlynewspapers,areexperiencingisaneconomicreality.Theresult,
somemightsay,isaracetothebottom.Really,itissimplymatterofeconomicsurvival.
Youmightwonderhowstreetphotographycanriseaboveandgainsufficienttractiontobeheardabovethe
din.Itwillnotbeeasy.Itwilltakehardwork.Thereachofsocialmediamakesitpossible.Thecollectiveof
streetphotographerstellingcompellingstoriesandworkingtogethertogetthosestoriesouttotheworldcan
makeadifference.
Ofcrucialimportanceinthiseffortaretheconceptsofethicsandintegrity.Theneedtoremainastrueas
possibletotheactualstorynottoconcoctorstageimagery,nottodistortperceptionthroughexcessive
editing,willbecriticaltosuccess.To,asWeberstatesinhisessay,engageintheactofphotojournalism,not
merelythestyle.Consumersofnewsmediaarealreadyskeptical.Ofthesocalledprofessionals.Thelevelof
skepticismofamateurinterloperswillbeevenhigher.Perseverancewillbeneeded.Fidelitytotheveracityof
theimageryandthestoryisparamount.Peoplewillbewatching.Anymisstepinethicsandintegritywillbe
jumpedonandthewholeofthecooperativeeffortdiscounted.Onethingworkinginthefavorofstreet
photographersisthatmanyaresticklersforauthenticity.Streetphotographers,generally,haveahighlevelof

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integrityandwillnotalteranimageforaestheticreasons.Ifthisideaistohaveanychanceofsucceeding,that
willbeofcrucialimportance.
Thereisanother,connected,useforstreetphotography,andthatissocialjustice.Wehaveseenthepowerof
imageryandsocialmediaoverthecourseofthepastnumberofyears.Twoeventsthatcomereadilytomind
aretheGreenRevolutionin2009inIranandtheArabSpringinEgyptin2011.Theseeventsfirstcameto
worldattentionthroughtheimageryoflocalphotographersviasocialmedia.Thepositioncancertainlybe
takenthat,ultimately,theseeventsdidnotleadtosignificantchangeintheirrespectivecountries.Butitisalso
thecasethat,absentviolentrevolution,significantchangetakestime.Itmaybearguedthat,asthecalendar
passedinto2016,wearestartingtoseesomeofthatchangeinIran.
Changeandacauseneednotbeonthescaleofcorruptoroppressivegovernmentstobevalid.Findacause
thatyouaresympatheticwithinyourcityortown.Perhapsitishomelessness.Perhapsurbandecay.Maybe
youfeelyourcitydoesnothavestrongenoughprotectionsforheritagebuildings.Whateveritmaybe,
researchittofindoutwhatothersinyourareaaredoingabouttheissue.Findoutwhatpeopleinotherpartsof
thecountry,andworld,aredoingabouttheissuewheretheylive.TherearelikelyresourcesontheInternet
thatallowlikemindedpeopletoshareideasandexperiences.Learnaboutwhatishappeningandthendecide
howyou,andyourstreetphotography,canaidinfindingsolutionstotheproblem.
Ifthissoundslikeacalltoaction,thatisgood.Becauseitis.Photographyisapowerfulmedium.More
powerfulthanwordsbutalso,potentially,moredeceptive.Streetphotography,owingtothedocumentaryand
journalisticnatureofit,canbeevenmorepowerfulstill.Usingthepowerofphotographyinapositivewayis,I
wouldgosofarastosay,themandateofthestreetphotographer.Areyouin?
Withouttrust,apeoplecannotstand
Confucius
Confuciuswasreferringtogovernmentbutwecanapplythisquotetophotographyaswellandtodocumentary
photographyinparticular.
Tobeclear,thisisnotapleaforincreasedlevelsofsocalledcitizenjournalism.ThisiPhoneera
phenomenon,Ifeel,getscarriedtoofarinmostcases.Toooftenpeoplepurportingtoengageintheactivity
arehidinganagendaandaretryingtousethepowerofsocialmediatofurtherit.Theyarelookingfortheir15
minutes.WemayhavehitthenadirofcitizenjournalisminApril,2015withtheBeatrizPaezincidentin
California.Sadly,andtoooften,traditionalmediacannotmovequicklyenoughtogetthesepictures,videos
andstoriesontotheairortheWebandthenecessaryduediligenceisnotundertaken.Thedeliberate,
ploddingtoday?,approachofwhatdoweknow,andhowdoweknowithasbeenreplacedbyhowquickly
canwegetitout,welldealwithproblemslater.Thecitizenisinterviewedandprovidestheirbiasedviewpoint
ofwhathasoccurred.Itcantakedaysforthefullstorytoemerge.Anditsometimesneverdoes.Inthe
meantime,misinformationisbeingspreadlikewildfireviatheviralconduitthatistheInternet.Contextand
perspectivearefurthereroded,asistrustinthemedia.Thistoo,isreminiscentofhistoricalerasofjournalism
beforecodesofconductwereputinplacetohelpensureaccuracyandobjectivity.Havewenotlearnedfrom
history?Arewenowintheprocessofrepeatingit?Thatcommontheme,yetagain.
WhatIamtalkingabouthowever,isexperiencedvisualstorytellersworkingtobringamuchneeded
perspectivetothenewsweseeandread,andusingtheirskillstoshinealightonneededcausesandunder
reportedissues.Notcreatingnews.Notbeingthenews.Notbeingantagonisticinthefurtheranceofa
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personalagenda,nortryingtomakeanameforthemselvesonYouTube.Viralityisnotsynonymouswith
validity.

TheInterview
ThanaFaroqwasbornandraisedinYemen,educatedinCanadaandtheUnitedStates,andhasreturnedto
herhomecountrytotellthevisualstoriesofitspeople.Sheisinternationallyexhibitedandhasbeena
conferencekeynotespeaker.peopleinmyphotosareneverstrangerstheyspeakrighttomysoulandtheir
storiesaremyassetstotransmitmyeverydayinspirationintoevocativeandcompellingphotographs.
Youcanseemoreofherworkandreadherblogonherwebsite.YoucanalsofollowherinTwitter,andsee
moreofherphotographyon500px.
Thisinterviewhasbeeneditedforclarity.Imagesareusedwithpermission.1.Whatattractedyoutostreet
photographyinitially?
Ihavealwaysbeenpassionateaboutpeopleandtothelifetheybringtothestreets.Beforeowningacamera,I
usedtogoforlongwalksenjoyingeverythingthatwashappeningaroundme.Itfeltlikethereweretoomany
livesinoneplaceandIwasattractedtodocumentingthesemomentsfirstbywritingaboutthem,andthen
whenIgotacameraitwaseasierformetocaptureeverythingaroundme.
2.Howdoyouconceiveof,ordefine,streetphotography?
Tome,itisavisualrepresentationofrealityandtheuntoldstoriesaroundus.

3.Whatareyourownethicalboundariesinyourwork?
IdliketothinkthatIhavenolimitsinmywork,butImobligatedtorespectpeoplesprivacyandnotshow
somethingthattheyarenotcomfortablewithrevealingtotheoutsideworld.IdeletephotoswhenIfeelpeople
arenthappywiththem.Ialsothinkitsrequiredtoaskpeopleforapprovalbeforepostingtheirphotosonline.
4.InNorthAmerica,andtheWestgenerally,wetakeitforgrantedthatitisbothlegalandacceptableto
takepicturesofpeoplewithouttheirpermissioninpublic.WhatisthesituationinYemenspecifically
andMuslimcountriesgenerally?
IliketotakecandidphotosandIrarelyaspeopleforpermission.Butisnotthecasewithwomen.Womenin
Yemenoftenrejecttheideaofbeingphotographed.Tothemphotographyisaboutexposingandthatisnot
acceptable,soItendtoasktheirpermissionfirst.Streetphotographyinmycountryisnotsomethingpeople
areeducatedaboutandawareof,soIoftengetmisunderstood.IthinkthisisanotherreasonwhyIdoit.Iwant
peopletoacceptitandgetusedtoitandIwanttoencourageotherpassionatephotographerstoneverbe
afraidtopursuestreetphotography.
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5.HowdoyoufeelbeingawomaninaMuslimcountryimpactsandinformsyourphotography?
BeingastreetphotographerinYemen,andforayoungwomantocarryhercameraandtouraroundisnot
somethingpeoplewouldbethrilledabout.Butittooksomuchcouragetointroducemyselfasafemale
photographeranddefenditasaright.IhadtomakecleartopeoplethatIamnotinthestreettoexposethem
tosomethingtheydontwant.IdothisbecauseIwanttotellthattheyexist,andthattheirexistenceisworth
sharing.
Also,onceIaminthestreet,peoplebecomepartofmystory.Theydontscaremeaway.Impartoftheirworld
toinformothersaboutthethingstheyarenotawareof.Ibelievestreetphotographycanmakeareal
connectionbetweenpeopleandthatswhatIlikeaboutit.

6.Doyouneedtotakeanyspecialprecautionsforyourownsafety?Orforthesafetyofyoursubjects?
No,IneverfeelunsafeanywhereIphotographinYemen.ImalwaysonanewmissionandIfeelIam
protectedbythegoodandvaluedcausesItrytopromotethroughmyphotography.
7.TellmeabouttheNGOprojectsyouhaveworkedon.
IworkedwithseveralNGOsondocumentingthesituationinYemen,especiallyduringthewar.Myworkwas
mainlyrelatedtothesituationofIDPs(Ed,IDPisanacronymforInternallyDisplacedPerson)inYemen.My
latestworkwiththeBritishCouncilinYemenisonaprojectcalledWomenLikeUs.Itisaphotoseriesproject
thatcapturesthestoriesof15womenfromdifferentsocialstatusesandclassesinYemenandtheir
experiencesofthewar,theirstruggles,theiraspirationsandtheirambitions.
8.Whatdoyouwantpeopletotakeawayfromviewingyourphotography?
InYemen,Istartedtomakephotographsnottocapturethebeautyoflife,nottoentertain,buttoinformandto
usethemasameansofteachingandlearning.Iwantpeopletofeelthat.Thegoalisalwaystocapture
somethingthatwouldcarryaperspectivethatpeoplearenotawareof,andproduceimagesthatchallenge
ideas.ThestreetsprovidemewithtruestoriesandIfeelobligatedtodelivertheminthewaytheypresent
themselvestome.Iwanttoprovidepositivevisualcontentandshowsomethingaboutthenatureofmystreets
beyondwhatisprovidedbythemediastream.

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9.Whatdoyouwanttotellpeopleaboutyourhome?
RegardlessofwhatyouhearinthemediaaboutYemen,mycountryisfilledwithrichcultureandbeauty.Itis
aninspiringplacewherepeoplewouldoverwhelmyouwiththeirgenerosityandkindness.Youngpeopleare
passionateandmotivatedtobringaboutnothingbutpeaceandchange.Evenduringthisdifficulttime,people
showedalotofresilienceandhope.
10.Doyoufeel,asastreetphotographer,youhaveanabilitytotellstoriesthattraditional
photojournalisticmediaeithercant,orwont,tell?
IaminthefieldandImakemyselfpresentandavailabletolookdeeperintopeopleslivesandexplorethe
untold.Iampartofthisenvironment.IamnotareportersothecontentIprovidewillbedifferentanduniquein
thesensethatitcapturesthespiritofmysurroundingsandnotjusttheshallowsurfaceofthem.
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