Where are the images of Haiti, by Haitians?
by Jim Hubbard
January 30, 2010
- Where are the images of Haiti, by Haitians?
- Where are the images of Haiti, by Haitians?
- Where are the images of Haiti, by Haitians?
- Where are the images of Haiti, by Haitians?
- Where are the images of Haiti, by Haitians?
- Where are the images of Haiti, by Haitians?
- Where are the images of Haiti, by Haitians?
- Where are the images of Haiti, by Haitians?
- Where are the images of Haiti, by Haitians?
- Where are the images of Haiti, by Haitians?
- Where are the images of Haiti, by Haitians?
by Jim Hubbard
Girl Getting Water, Photo by: Unknown, Flckr Post
There is no better time than now, nor place than Haiti, to provide citizens with cameras to tell their own story.
Last month, media professionals dropped in on Haiti following the devastating 7.0 earthquake. Major print media, competing for viewers, dispatched star photographers to the scene. The Washington Post sent Carol Guzy, winner of several Pulitzer Prizes. Her images, posted to the Internet, are shot in stark black and white, making them even more dramatic. The Los Angeles Times sent Carolyn Cole, and the New York Times sent Damon Winter, also Pulitzer winners. Even legendary war photographer James Nawtchwey was there a few days after the quake. They, along with scores of other photographers from around the world, captured devastating images of death, despair, and destruction that were relayed to those outside Haiti via the Internet and 24/7 news outlets.
The volume of such images in the U.S. press, particularly of dead and dying people, eclipses the number of similar images from any other natural or unnatural calamity in recent memory. In fact, this may be the first time that mainstream media in the United States has saturated the public with death imagery, upsetting many viewers but also inducing sympathy prompting significant philanthropy.
Collectively, the thousands of images taken by professional photographers represent one of the most compelling depictions of a catastrophe that I have seen in my 40 years as a professional photographer. With no yellow police tape stretched across the tragedy, as would be customary in the United States, the photographers had complete access and, under perilous conditions, created beautifully crafted, albeit gruesome, photographs. They did a superb job depicting epic horror, which millions of others witnessed at a distance through their newspapers, Internet sites, and television.
In addition to still image coverage, television crews from across the globe sent their star on–camera reporters who provided round–the–clock coverage. CNN, for example, sent Dr. Sanjay Gupta and anchor Anderson Cooper. While watching CNN, feature after feature showed Dr. Gupta saving lives, while nimble enough to also report the story. Cooper, a heroic Johnny-on-the spot, conducted interviews with people who had just lost their entire family or had been recently dug out of the rubble, some cooperating with Cooper’s interviews even while dying of hunger and thirst or requiring emergency medical care which, in the earliest days of the crisis, was essentially unavailable. I was mesmerized by their stories, although it was increasingly unclear who the story was really about: the reporter, devastated by what she or he was witnessing, or the people living the nightmare.
By year’s end, when the images from Haiti are a blur in the public’s mind, the major publications will devote significant time and resources toward winning the coveted Pulitzer Prize; winners will earn bragging rights over their competitors. It is also conceivable that, in a decade or two, some of the beautiful but devastating images may be hanging in a gallery or museum and sold as art to wealthy patrons.
What was missing from this reportage—both still and moving—was the opportunity for Haitians to tell their own stories. One blogger stated on internet site Newspaper Death Watch, “When Diane Sawyer arrived on the scene she got to practice her O-Level French but, apart from that, there was nothing she said that could not have been said better, more concisely, more urgently, by anybody whose house had been reduced to splinters and rubble and who’s family members were buried under it all.”
This brings me to the heart of the issue: Why wasn’t more time devoted to citizen storytelling? And, when the media departs to await another earth shattering story, will we continue to cover the story; especially if it is told by the people of Haiti, showing and telling the world of their ongoing struggle to rebuild their lives?
There is a decades old criticism of the “outsider,” most often journalists from developed nations, arriving in underdeveloped nations to tell the story of “insiders.” Whether HIV/AIDS in sub–Saharan Africa, conflict in the Middle East, violence in economically depressed U.S. inner cities, poverty and alcoholism in Native American communities or, currently, victims of the earthquake in Haiti, the outsiders’ stories are often the only stories told. Criticism tends to focus not on the presence of journalists but, rather, on the ways in which they depict the story and the lack of acknowledgment that there is an equally, if not more important role, for local storytellers.
With the attention that professional journalism has brought to both the plight and strengths of the Haitian people, perhaps this is a perfect time to expand the practice of participant photography in Haiti, providing Haitian citizens the opportunity to develop their media skills and visually share their continuing stories over the coming decades. There are, currently, a host of NGO’s in Haiti capable of training people in the tools and technology necessary to sustain global attention for their long–term struggles. One group, Zanmi Lakay, has been teaching participatory photography for several years. Founded by American Jennifer Pantaléon of Pacifica, California, along with her Haitian husband Guy, they are dedicated to improving the quality of life for current and former Haitian street children and orphans.
It is urgent that the Haitian story continues to be told long after the journalists leave. Engaging Haitians to tell their own stories to the world, through pictures and words, is one way to reveal the resiliency and beauty of the human spirit and to show the rest of the world Haitian’s are valued in God’s creation.
The saying goes that time heals all wounds. I don’t think that’s completely true though. I think it’s more accurate to say that time makes people forget. Will Haiti be cured because you decided to contribute ten dollars on your cell phone? No, there is simply far too much damage in the country to make a quick fix.
We all saw the photos. We were all moved by them. We all reacted. And we all forgot, believing that our duty as citizens of humanity was completed. Of course, the country does need funding to help rebuild and stabilize life. But it needs human encouragement and compassion as well. Without continuous outside support and acknowledgment, the country cannot be rebuilt effectively.
However, all the reporters have left as mentioned in the article above. Immediate medical attention has been (though not completely) provided. The dead have been buried and life is trying to return to normal. Haitians, however, will continue to live with the tragedy and reminders of the earthquake everyday. The polarities between normal life and tragic earthquake will exist in this country for years to come. As Jim argues, the Haitian story continues even after the journalists leave. This is why it is important to allow Haitians to tell their own stories. These people live the contrast of normal and tragic, and should be presented with the opportunity to tell the world their stories, from their point of view.
The media has left. There is no one to tell the stories but the Haitians themselves. This opportunity will provide a medium for the citizens to express their feelings, thoughts and the turmoil and joys they have been through since the earthquake has become further and further from everyone’s mind. Allowing Haitians to tell their own stories, from their own views, will keep fresh in the mind of others the tragedy which occurred in this country, the determination of life to subsist, and the potential progress of a nation.
It is easy to forget the tragedies of a nation when the cameras leave. Public awareness and interest in faraway lands are mediated by the media coverage that is afforded to them. The recent images of Haiti have opened the eyes of so many Americans and it is legitimate to worry what will happen to public interest when the reporters go home. All of those citizens in Haiti who have begged photographers to document their sorrows will be left still mourning, without any way to publicize their stories.
Participant photography, then, offers a partial solution. With a little help, Haitians themselves can share their stories. Haitians do not just see the destruction; they feel it. They look at it with reference to what the nation was before the great natural disaster. If we were able to give the cameras to Haitian citizens, they would be able to present an unbiased, true depiction of the disaster. Additionally, these citizens could continue photographing once the reporters left. They could keep the images of Haiti coming and unsure that public concern does not fade away. The reparation of Haiti will take years and people must remain engaged in the struggle in order to help support Haiti during their extended time of need.
How, though, will participant photography work in Haiti? Who will give the Haitians cameras? Who will publish the photographs of the Haitians? How many more photographs of destruction are people willing to look at? While it is true that participant photography would allow the stories of Haiti to continue once the reporters pack up and go home, it is important to brainstorm how this would be plausible. In a perfect world, participant photography would allow for a brilliant and beautiful new perspective of Haiti and hopefully charitable participant photography organizations like Venice Arts will be able to step in and make this idea a reality.
In the beginning, when the first images of Haiti started filling up newspapers and the internet I personally had no desire to look at them. I would avoid them, being too frightened to confront reality. However now, after reading articles and further discussing this controversy, I am more inclined to analyze and appreciate the pictures being taken, because after all, they are telling us the truth. Yet, still, after observing these images, I believe that photojournalists tend to find exaggerated moments, slightly taking advantage of the Haitians. I think that what contributes to the sensationalism is the amount of images being portrayed. The high quantity of images of tragedy and sadness has saturated viewers, who are tired of seeing pain.
Participant photography would change the perspective in which these images are being captured. It has been a month after the devastating earthquake and I have no doubt that the Haitian population is still suffering from the tragedy. From the outside we still see destroyed homes and sick people however we have never had an opportunity to see things through the inside. By giving Haitian people cameras we might have a prospect of seeing images of hope and recovery. It would be extremely interesting to possibly see pictures of Haitians working together to rebuild a home or to see families finally together again. Maybe people in Haiti are also tired of seeing grief, and want to show the world that they are united and hopeful. This would be helpful for the viewers on the outside who have been bombarded with pictures of sorrow, to know that there is still a chance for these people to rebuild their lives, as well as for the Haitians themselves whose hopes and dreams are blocked by camera lenses and reporters who only want to portray their anguish. By encouraging participant photography in Haiti, people would finally be given a chance to tell their own stories beginning with a tragedy but later demonstrating hope and ending with a better future.
Since the Holocaust no foreign event has resulted in the production of as many media images as the Haiti earthquake. It is because of Haiti’s underdeveloped status that photographers have been able to produce such a large amount of photographs with such a great level of despair. Due to the to the plethora of graphic photographs which have been published, Americans have either become deeply upset, or extremely motivated philanthropically. And even though such catastrophes have taken place all over the world over the last fifty years, no single event has created such a buzz and such a movement for philanthropy than Haiti.
Even though many photographers have been documenting the aftermath of this recent disaster, it is crucial to note that the majority of these photographers did not go there with the sole purpose of illustrating the destruction of the earthquake. They were sent to Haiti, or rather commissioned by large publications and media corporations to capture the devastation. But what does capture really mean in this context? No matter how close they may be able to access the Haitians and the turmoil they are currently experiencing as a people and country, they are still outsiders. These photographers are not personally suffering from the earthquake, they are merely outsiders catching a quick glance. In addition to immediate medical and general health relief, it is important to also explore the possible opportunities of participatory photography. By providing Haitians with the ability to produce their own images, we could be able to see this tragedy through a completely different perspective.
Before taking this course, I had no idea about the competitive nature of newspapers. I did not know that they competed so seriously for the Pulitzer Prize, by constantly sending their finest photographers to great photo opportunities. Upon finding out, I seemed to lose a little bit of respect for these photographers. In an ideal world, they are supposed to care about the people who have lost everything in Haiti. They are out there risking their lives to report on the tragedy to the rest of the world. The are the links between first world and third world countries, sparking things such as relief effort and immediate aid.
Are they just got photographers who are in it for the money? The prestige? I mean, I’m sure they care about the women who lost her child during the earthquake, or the little boy who lost his parents. But to what extent? Actually, the better question is, are they supposed to care? The reader of the newspaper, or the viewer of the photograph would like to think so. We know we live in America and we know that almost everything is run by money. But we seem to suspend that ideology in order to validate our conscience and redeem altruistic acts, involving sympathy, empathy, and concern. Who holds that moral compass?
Albeit, the photographs are incredible. The focus of the subjects, the crisp detail in the symmetry, and the positioning of the background all exude human loss, and sometimes hope. They are the images that sparked thousands of people across the nation to disregard our economic meltdown and donate money to strangers. For that reason, I applaud these photographers. And in an ideal world, the Pulitzer Prize should be awarded for this reason - not for the sole purpose of good PR for the newspaper.
I completely agree that the Haitians’ story cannot be fully told unless their perspective is part of the global story. Of course, the general public does appreciate the news industry sending out its finest to cover the tragedy, but their finest can never replace a local. It is exciting to know that there are currently numerous NGO’s in Haiti capable of training people to engage in participatory photography. Hopefully, this is not a story that will die out when the media decides something else is more important. Hopefully, the Haitians themselves will decide the fate of global awareness.
I also think there is a lot of truth to the notion that the volume of images from Haiti has eclipsed the number of images from any other natural disaster in recent history. Though no real explanation has been offered, there are some plausible ones. For one, this disaster did not take place in the U.S., where officials are usually quick to block off areas after a disaster has occurred. It may also be logical to think that the Internet model of journalism is finally progressing, and there are more eyeballs on computer screens than ever before. Photographers and newspaper publishers alike are becoming aware of this, which allows for more photographs to be integrated into a story.
Unlike print news media, there is no limit to the amount of photos one wants to include in a story online. The newspaper industry is currently undergoing a revolution of sorts, with many shifting online and shutting down print publications, which was not the case during the Hurricane Katrina tragedy, for example. Photographers today have a significantly easier and more accessible platform to publish their work than ever before, which perhaps explains the enormous volume of Haiti images we are seeing online today.
The stories coming from Haiti today are very one sided. Newscasters and photographers are covering only certain aspects of stories and taking pictures of the most heart-wrenching scenarios in order to garner an audience. I am not saying this is wrong; I understand that humans are attracted to perverse aspects of life and that the broadcasters realize this will be a way to earn money, which after all is needed. I feel, however, that the lack of “inside stories” from the people of Haiti makes the news non-objective. We only see images that the white elite power holders want to show the American public. We do not get a story or images from the Haitians.
There could be a tinge of racism seen in this, even an imperialistic quality in the news: The white man coming to save the savage society. We see images of destruction which are framed in a way so that the white newscasters can come and fix scenarios. This is a severe flaw in our news. We need to have stories where the Haitians can voice how they really feel, how they see their lot improving, and how they are helping themselves. While we are seeing the horribleness of this tragedy we also need to have news that is objective that comes from the Haitian view point, spared from the egalitarian perspective of American newscasters
It brings tears to my eyes to think that the people of Haiti are being exploited by citizens of other countries who essentially invade their land ultimately to be named “the best photographer of their time”. While Anderson Cooper was tucked nicely away in his beautifully furnished hotel room, his interviewee was outside urgently searching for food, water, loved ones, and medical attention. The questions become, who will pay that interviewee attention once Cooper leaves? What about the other thousands of people who didn’t get to tell their stories for millions of people around the world to see? What about after all the upheaval dies down?
I’ll tell you what happens. They die. Maybe not literally, but verbally. No one ever hears from them, and quite frankly no one seems to care. I try not to feel like Haitians are not being subject to poverty porn (which I learned occurs when “outsiders exploit the poor’s condition in order to generate the necessary sympathy for selling newspapers or increasing charitable donations or support for a given cause. Poverty porn is typically associated with black, poverty-stricken Africans, but can be found elsewhere.” –www.aidthoughts.org) but the truth is that, according to the definition above, they are. I would much rather believe that Haitians are being helped by the media and all that’s it’s doing to shed light on recent events. However, it’s hard to tell by the floods of nicely dressed media professionals in Haiti snapping pictures and then returning home to their normal lives. Are they tossing and turning at night searching for solutions to one of the world’s greatest problems right now? I digress.
Instead of focusing o the strength of the Haitian people, many professional photographers focus on the devastation and tragedy to evoke sympathy from audiences. The problem I have with this is that the focus should not be selling newspapers, getting people to subscribe to your blog, or winner a Pulitzer Prize in photography. The focus of a photographer in Haiti just four weeks after one of the most horrific tragedies in human history should be saving lives, helping people, and furthering relief efforts. How can you do this with your camera and some film? Let them tell their own stories. Not for money. Not for fame. For humanity.
I couldn’t have put this better myself:
“It is urgent that the Haitian story continues to be told long after the journalists leave. Engaging Haitians to tell their own stories to the world, through pictures and words, is one way to reveal the resiliency and beauty of the human spirit and to show the rest of the world Haitian’s are valued in God’s creation.”
in regards to Haiti, there were a lot of things that bothered me about the news coverage of the earthquake. First of all, like all natural disasters, we pounced our attention on it for the first two weeks post-quake, and then it virtually disappeared from the press. We still hear about “fundraising” efforts here, but not really that much about what’s going on in Haiti right now, weeks afterwards. Also, we read so many stories about Haiti and watched videos of stories, but always through the lens or the pen of a foreigner. Like we were talking about in class, the Pulitzer Prize-winning photographs are important to some degree of awareness, but they create a temporary shock effect that disintegrates as new images splash across the front page.
I think it is important for us, as Americans, to face the reality of issues that persist after we have done the “quick fix” foreign aid. I would love to read stories of Haitians, not necessarily about their experience during the actual quake, but what the consquences are now, for Haiti. What were the factors that contributed to the scale of disaster of this earthquake? What is the reality of child trafficking after this quake and what should be done in an effort to address it? What are the next steps for rebuilding? How will this effect the economy and the lives of individual business owners? Etc, etc, etc. All in the voice of a Haitian. Photos as well.
Wouldn’t it be great to create a one-time publication (online) that had maybe 50 different articles written by Haitians about different issues they now face, and how the world can be relevant to them. Foreign aid is great, but I’m interested in alternatives to the money bandaid, and I think this would be a really interesting way to stir up the creativity and the minds of the American people, as well as expose them to the realities of post-disaster situations, which most of us really don’t know or don’t want to know much about. Of course, this would require not only funding for travel but also for a translator who could translate documents and perhaps transcribe stories for those contributors who do not know how to write.
I didn’t look at the pictures from Haiti until the pictures from The New York Times were sent to us, and after looking at just one, I immediately wanted to see all of them. There are so many images of this catastrophe, many containing numerous amounts of dead black bodies strewn about the streets or in mass uncovered graves, and it does beg the question, why Is there so much death imagery being shown in the American press like never before? The round the clock coverage and graphic images of half-naked disfigured bodies of men, women and children piled on top of one another, “inducing sympathy prompting significant philanthropy” seems to be saying something deep about American ideology. As every disaster produces horrific scenes of carnage and presents photographers and their editors with the challenge of telling the truth; showing catastrophes in the United States or of dead white flesh similar to pictures from Haiti in American newspapers, is considered to be exploitative, offensive and is therefore prohibited. Why is this?
By major news corporations showing these images, positioning the Haitians as poor, dependent, weak and therefore “other” from Americans, it invokes our need to help. But humanitarianism, using sensationalistic and graphic images like those in the Times in order to solicit, can be understood as a creation of an increasingly entertainment-oriented mass culture. This is made blatantly clear when thinking about how many of these images will be, like stated above, up for the Pulitzer Prize and shown in gallery exhibits.
A final opinion about Haitian’s taking photos of the disaster themselves: I believe that it is the outside perspective of these images we have been shown, that allows us to look at so many of them and for them to be published so freely. My inner cynic informs me that once the entertainment of the humanitarian effort has died down, Americans won’t want to see any more death images from Haiti by Haitians.
There is a very difficult line between documentation and exploitation. The photographers depicting the travesty in Haiti have been dabbling on the border of this predicament. Although some of them may have genuine intentions to depict a world occurrence, it’s impossible to deny that some photo journalists are in Haiti to further their careers. Although this is disheartening, the duality of the issue poses a larger social question: Is it worth it for photographers to enhance their careers if it means educating the public on global issues?
Although this is a very tricky question to answer on many levels, this article is helpful in posing a similar inquiry. Where is the line between career-enhancement and societal-education? It may be simple and easy to suggest that all photographers are in Haiti to exploit Haitians and make a name for themselves, but it would be too skeptical to believe that all photographers are there to exploit. Because there are many people who do have genuine hearts, it is highly likely that there are some photographers there to showcase the plight of Haitians and elicit donations for their benefit. Although this may be naïve, I sincerely hope that there are photographers in Haiti considering how their jobs can inspire tremendous financial contributions in light of this tragedy.
First off, I should say that every time there is a natural disaster in the world, America and her butt buddies come to the rescue to “save the day.” The truth is, no one gave a shit about Haiti before the quake, and I bet you most people could not point it out on a map. This saturation of death imagery is one giant guilt trip (like my Jewish and Catholic friends aren’t already shitting their pants). It is impossible for us to save everyone, but maybe, if we took care of problems sooner, there would be less suffering at the time of an “epidemic” (natural disaster, political revolution). And believe me this, there will be an onslaught of natural disasters in our lifetime and it is only going to get worse. So this would be a good chance to travel to all of those third world countries you have been dying to go visit.
How perfect is this quote:
“By year’s end, when the images from Haiti are a blur in the public’s mind, the major publications will devote significant time and resources toward winning the coveted Pulitzer Prize; winners will earn bragging rights over their competitors. It is also conceivable that, in a decade or two, some of the beautiful but devastating images may be hanging in a gallery or museum and sold as art to wealthy patrons.”
The Haiti earthquake is just another event to document and “shock” people with as a form of shock art (entertainment) and NOT education. As if to say, “Hey Alex, look at this crazy fucking photo. Woah dude, there are like people, dead and suffering. This is a fucking sick picture. I want that pic to be the cover of our album!” It is sad to imagine how excited photographers get when another catastrophe happens. “I got another chance to win an award,” one photographer might think. “I could become famous,” thought the second. But does anyone stop to think, “is this right?”
As much as I would love to give a camera to a Haiti to self-document the horrendous natural disaster that just plagued his or her country (family, friends, fellow Haitians), I think I will take a rain check. Maybe if we give the cameras to them… BEFORE shit hits the fan, then that would be okay. What if your house burned down, with all of your family and cute pets inside, and then somebody gave you a camera, and said, “document what you see and feel.” Personally, I would either be:
1) too hysterical to handle my shit
2) punch the person in the face and tell him to fuck off
Moral of the Story: let us not forget about the third world countries. And let’s study cultures from within and not from outside.
Like we discussed in class, a picture is for the most part worth a thousand words. If its not worth a 1000 words, its definitely telling us a story and uncovering the truth of a person’s life through that image. In Haiti, the pictures we are seeing of death and suffering are telling an incredible story. They are depicting the real brutality and rage of mother nature, and how we all need to be so very thankful and appreciative of our earth because it can so quickly strip all we love and have away. However, the photos being taken of the Haitians after the earthquake are being taken in the eye of photojournalists with one goal in mind, and that goal is to win a pulitzer prize or some award for their work, I really would like to believe that some of the photographers there capturing the horror and death are really there because they are doing it to share the story with the world, but unfrotunately their motives are more than just showing the horrible brutality, something not seen since the Holocaust, its about earning a buck. This is why participatory photography is so beautiful and why Haitains really need the ability to use the camera and snap the trigger themselves.
Every story truly needs a first persepctive, and if Haitians are given that ability, the photos that would result from that time, would echo an eternity. We wouldn’t just see photos of injured, sick, and the dead, we would probably see images they take of each other coping with the events, and living life, trying to find the beauty that life still has while they are alive. We might even see smiles, something the media has complettely deprived us of. The truth behind that is, every human being smiles, smiling is the best cure for sorrow and sometimes an incredible recipe for ana amazing picture. I believe you would see smiles and not just death if the Haitians were to have the cameras, becuase like in every horrible event in life, we must mourn and then move on. I believe it is extremely important for this world, and for the country to be able to truly share their story from the ground level perspective, and the results will show a people who will make it through the shit storm they have been in.
There is no denying that the recent earthquake disaster in Haiti served as a huge opportunity for America’s news media to showcase their best story-telling and image-gathering work to the rest of the world. Indeed, one can make a convincing argument that now is the prime opportunity for Haitians to showcase their own stories by using the same technological tools brought in by the countries providing life-saving aid to the Haitian people. While I agree that it would be incredibly interesting to hear stories about the earthquake and its aftermath from Haitian citizens themselves, I think it is wrong to criticize the news media for portraying these stories as “outsiders” to begin with. My immediate reaction is, at least the stories were being told at all! Haiti has received more aid from America and developed countries around the world than almost any other disaster in recent history. Much of this is due to the mere fact that so many images have been thrust into the public eye from these major news media sources. I feel that in addition to getting the word out there that there is major need for aid in Haiti through the news outlets, our immediate attention should be on providing this much-needed aid in the form of food, water, medical attention, and shelter – not in the form of cameras, at least initially.
Furthermore, though the news teams are not providing a solely philanthropic service in telling the stories of these Haitians to the world, they are trained in finding the stories that are going to be most interesting and compelling to their audiences. Thus trained news teams may be most effective in immediately sending out the messages that will attract the most attention, and therefore the most response and aid from the rest of the world. When in crisis, most individuals can only react to the present situation, and seek to protect or provide for themselves and their loved ones, rather than figuring out how they should tell their story to an eager media audience who will do with it what they will. However, in the coming weeks, as recovery begins to take place and immediate medical, food, and hydration needs have been satisfied, THEN I think it would be compelling to move in and provide Hatians with the tools they need to tell their story to the rest of the world. Obviously stories about their struggle from their perspective are endlessly fascinating and would provide the valuable opportunity to view a crisis from the eyes of the individuals who experienced it.
I think the most striking thing to me about the general public’s fascination with Haiti was that I didn’t share it. Sure, I texted my $10 (to somebody…) and felt all good and philanthropic, and yes, I came across several of these alternately “illuminating” or “exploitative” photos, but only incidentally, and I was never compelled to really read the stories to which they were attached. Perhaps I’m an obnoxious anomaly, plugging my ears and singing “lalala can’t hear youuuu,” going on with my charmed first-world existence. Perhaps, since bad news seems to be what sells newspapers and pulls viewers in at 11, but I don’t think so.
A recent study in the New York Times found the type of articles most often emailed were not horror stories from around the world, but positive ones, or ones that inspired awe (at the triumphs of people, of science, what have you), and that’s certainly true of the news that I tend to pay attention to. It’s hard enough hearing how our own country is in a mess of late, figuratively if not physically, and to find out about more suffering, well, it’s not just depressing, but in a way, infuriating. Even after sending my well-intentioned text, I still felt fairly impotent - how in the world is that $10 going to matter? Where’s it going anyway? I couldn’t help but feel that those donations were just an easy way to make people who had seen these pictures feel better about themselves (Look how much worse they’ve got it! And you can help, without any real effort!), not as a way to actually ease suffering in Haiti.
Of course the pictures that outsiders take of a disaster situation are going to be more sensational, because in a landscape that’s totally foreign, that’s what stands out to them. But from the Haitians’ perspective, perhaps what’s really needed, the stories that really need to be told, are ones of triumphant struggle, of surviving. You know, positive ones. Awe-inspiring. Maybe then pricks like me won’t self-censor and go about their daily lives, and instead stop, look, read, and learn. And e-mail it along.
This earthquake has become an international news story. Print media sources from around the world have thoroughly documented the event and their photographers have worked to capture its gruesome aftermath. The earthquake that occurred on January 12, 2010 affected a nation of people. However, the coverage of the event has largely been reported by foreign sources. While individuals may argue international coverage has diluted this nation’s story, it has only strengthened it. The real story lies with the people of Haiti. Even as the world attention of this national event dwindles, the Haitian newspapers and reporters will continue to document the aftermath of this natural disaster.
This is a national event that has attracted international attention, attention that has raised world awareness and rallied support to rebuild the country. The Haitian people and their media have been documenting this event. While their means of representation does not garner an international spotlight with their journalistic efforts, it does not mean that it does not exist. It is vital for the Haitian people to document their own history because it represents their national and personal story; how this event has affected their way of life. Whereas, larger print sources work to capture award-winning aesthetics and write well written articles, the people of Haiti need to capture the reality of this event through their own perspective, a perspective that no foreign individual could possibly capture. The importance of Haitian journalism serves their national cause and history. The world attention of their national journalism is irrelevant. Imposing technological standards and equipment from international sources only further dilutes and interrupts their culture and their way of preserving this natural disaster. The Haitian people are documenting this event on the national level to the best of their ability.
As this article mentions, we are outsiders looking in. Safe and warm in our homes, we read the stories, see the photos, hear the news reports, and think to ourselves “gee, that’s really horrible”. Then we pick up our Grande Mochaccinos and grumble about our morning commute. We think we care, we try to care, but in actuality most of us have an attention span for this sort of world tragedy that lasts only so long as the photographs are on the front page. Although the stark and shocking nature of the Haiti archive has brought us closer to such a tragedy than ever before, the reporters are telling a foreign story, and still we are outsiders.
If I recall correctly, in the aftermath of the September 11th terrorist attacks, United States newspapers featured a special section devoted to disaster and world response coverage for at least a year following the tragedy – a section filled with photographs, articles, interviews, etc., a section that Americans read avidly. Was our attention span lengthened because in this tragedy we were the insiders? Yes, I believe this was the case – of course Americans care more about issues on our own soil, they are closer to home and thus tap into our sense of national identity. Also, in the aftermath of September 11th, we listened to stories told by Americans, not by outsiders, and similarly people all over the world turned to our media to get an American perspective on the tragedy. So where is the Haitian perspective on the earthquake in Haiti? I couldn’t agree more that it is time to give the camera to insiders, to see the drama through Haitian eyes and hear the story from local storytellers. If Haitians develop a media outlet to speak to the world about their ongoing struggles, then perhaps the world will tune in and pay attention.
Finally, as outsiders reporting on Haiti we walk a fine line between spreading awareness to inspire philanthropy and exploiting Haitian suffering to advance personal motives. Winning “bragging rights” in the Pulitzer Prize competition, selling more newspapers, adding works of “art” to a photography portfolio – are these the real reason photographers flock to the scene of a catastrophe? True the professional images of Haiti have moved thousands to donate money, but photographs taken by Haitians themselves can have the same effect. Outside reporters have generated global interest in the country’s story, now we should give Haitians the opportunity to hold that interest and communicate with those who can and want to help.