Fake News orWhite Lies
An award-winning photographer, John Moore captured a heart-wrenching photo of a 2-year-old Honduran girl sobbing beside her mother while a border patrol agent stands in front of her. His photo, “inspired people to donate to legal defense services for refugees” (Lauricelle, 2018). Moores, photo also represents the future that many immigrants face during Trumps “zero-tolerance” policy that is implemented for immigrants trying to cross the boarded “illegally”.
I think that in the article, Moore should have made it clear that the mother and daughter were not separated. But I also think that there are thousands of families that are torn apart and this one mother and daughter story of not being separated is not the bright side of immigration. I also think Moores intentions were pure and he posted the photo in order to provide a picture of what we usually hear about and his photo also generates empathy from citizens. I also agree that Time should have run the cover photo of Trump and the little girl. As mentioned above, the article could have used this opportunity to provide more insight into what this little girl and her mother could possibly be facing if they were to be separated. Although Yanela and her mother were not separated, the photo and the photo in Times served a purpose.
One of the ethical problems that could arise from this photo would be the care for the child. Considering that this photo was intended to be powerful and leave an impression with the audiences that sees it. To continue, this crying little girl will have her face plastered on Time magazine forever. There is a chance that when she is older she could be remembered as the child from Times magazine with Trump. In contrast, when she is older she might be happy that this photo of her crying “inspired people to donate to legal defense services for refugees” (Lauricelle, 2018).
Lastly, I think that this is also an opportunity for media creators to understand the importance of transparency but I also think that this was a great moment for Time magazine because this moment shows that they are a company that has a certain value and they will stand up for themselves as well as supporting a large group of people that don’t have an advocate that is able to have the reach and frequency as other outlets.
Lauricella, S. (2018). Case Study: Does the Photo Fit the News? The Ethics of Powerful Images in the Immigration Debate. Media Ethics, 30(1). Retrieved from https://www.mediaethicsmagazine.com/index.php/browse-back-issues/210-fall-2018-vol/3999232-does-the-photo-fit-the-news