The Digital Journalist

Letter from
the Publisher

Welcome to the September 2003 issue of The Digital Journalist, the monthly online magazine for visual journalism.

This spring, the editors of LIFE approached us with an offer to collaborate with them on the selection of 100 photographs that changed the world for a new book that has just been published. In partnership with the Center For American History at the University of Texas, we solicited opinions from editors and academics. The challenge was to differentiate photographs that actually caused change from icons that represent those changes. For example, we felt that Joe Rosenthal's famous image of Marines raising the stars and stripes on Mt. Suribachi commemorated that event, whereas the portrait of Anne Frank galvanized opinion during World War II. From LIFE'S choices, we have selected 25 images that we are presenting to you in this issue. Dr.Patrick Cox, Professor of Journalism History at UT provides his further thoughts on this process.

With this issue, we are announcing the addition of two outstanding photojournalists to our masthead. Both David and Peter Turnley have contributed outstanding bodies of work to The Digital Journalist over the past years. They have roamed from war zones to covering the horrible events of 9/11 in their own hometown. They are our first "Contributing Photographers At Large", and we look forward to publishing their work in these pages in the months to come. This month, Peter takes a much-needed break from war and violence to cover the commemorative ride by thousands of motorcycle owners to celebrate the 100th anniversary of Harley Davidson.

Even though it was only a 2-day story, the blackout that hit the Northeast United States and the Canadian border produced some amazing photographs. Our Dispatches editor Amy Bowers has assembled photographs and diaries from Vince Laforet of The New York Times and Rene Clement on their experiences. Newsweek Director of Photography Simon Barnett writes about the experience. To kick off our 2004 campaign coverage, Mario Toma writes about the "sleepless tour" with Dr. Howard Dean.

The current issue of American Photo magazine features a 16-page feature on how photojournalists covered the war in Iraq. This feature was produced in collaboration with The Digital Journalist and was assembled from our coverage of the war this spring. This is the second major collaboration between AP and TDJ, the first being our coverage of 9/11. David Friend has written a major essay reflecting on the work that photojournalists did on that war front, which we present in this issue.

Mazen Dana was the second Reuters TV cameraman to be killed in Iraq. He was shot from an American tank as he was standing with a group of journalists in front of an Iraqi prison.

Joel Campagna from The Committee To Protect Journalists reports how he died in our commentary this month.

Last month we asked our readers to respond to a questionnaire to determine how digital has affected photojournalism. There is no longer any doubt that film is dead in this industry. The results of our poll are in this issue. You may find some surprises in the answers.

Jim Colburn has been off to Paris yet again, and muses about some of the shows he has caught at photo galleries. Contributing Editor Peter Howe is also back in France to report on this year's Visa Pour L'Image show at Perpignan.Bill Pierce talks about how you take that "decisive moment"that you may find in a museum, without upsetting unwitting subjects.

Finally, Mark Loundy writes that he nearly had a heart attack when an editor recently told him that he was "shocked and troubled by the greed of freelance photographers." Mark reconstructs what it really takes for a photographer to match that editor's pay.

We hope you enjoy this issue.

An Urgent Message from The Digital Journalist

This 6th anniversary issue is our 71st. For the past 5 years we have been delivering this monthly web magazine to you free of cost. Since we started publishing, more than 31,000,000 Unique Visitors have come to our pages. We have twice won the top award in the Online News Association Best Feature competition. With over 200,000 unique visitors a month, we are competing in the same category as such major web sites as the New York Times, Washington Post, MSNBC and CNN.

Our revenue, which sadly is far less than it costs to produce the issues, comes entirely from companies like Canon, who have been very supportive, but the bureaucracy inherent in dealing with advertising agencies, provide for fitful cash flow. We therefore depend on contributions from you, our readers to keep going. If 1/4 of the people on our mailing list made a contribution of $20 we would have the revenue we need to keep going.

So this is an appeal for your help. Please take the time to go to the I-bill pledge section on our contents page, and make a contribution. Also, talk to your friends, and ask them to also make pledges.

We are very proud of what we do for the photojournalistic industry, and want to keep doing it.

Thank you for your help

Dirck Halstead
Editor and Publisher
The Digital Journalist
dhalstead@dvnetwork.net

THIS MONTH IN THE ASSIGNMENT SHEET

On the September Assignment Sheet feature page, tv shooter Mark Neuling once again treats us to samples of life as a cameraperson shooting everyday stories. No headlines, no bomb bursts, just life on the home front with all of its fun and games. You know what I mean. We've all been there. His first journal recounts the ups and downs of the media trying to photograph a presser by Homeland Security Chief Tom Ridge in San Francisco. I'm sure that most of you will relate to "IT'S SAN FRANCISCO, MAN." Neuling is a Field Camera Operator for TechTV.

Dick Kraus
Editor
The Assignment Sheet on The Digital Journalist

 

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