Social responsibility at work

   My Intro to Photojournalism students were assigned to shoot weather photos last week. They learned how hard it is to document real people in real situations. A common question in class yesterday: Do our photos have to have people in them?
   Well, yes and no.
   This week's assignment required them to turn in two photos related to weather. One had to be a scene setter, or a wide shot. The other needed to be tight, to show detail. As in all photography, the subject matter depends on the subject.
   One student documented a new sledding hill at an area park. All of her photos captured happy people playing in the snow, so they were all willing to supply their names for caption information. But another student shot an electrical outlet box in the basement of a building with rain water  "gushing" over it. Is that a major safety issue? If so, I doubt the janitor would dare pose by it for obvious reasons. This student thought this was a powerful photo that she was compelled to take, but was reluctant to turn it in because the photos should have included people.
   I approved this photo because journalism is a social responsibility, after all. If she was working for a community newspaper, that photo would make a powerful statement about the dangerous mix of water and electricity. Who is responsible for the upkeep of that building?  What if the electrical box caught fire and caused the deaths of residents (if it's an apartment complex), or students (if it's a campus building)? This is a wonderful example of witnessing a problem and bringing it to light.
    This is social responsibility at work. Journalism's first loyalty is to its citizens, according The Elements of Journalism by Bill Kovach and Tom Rosenstiel. This photo could help save lives. The caption information she collected on this photo will be paramount to the success of this particular static photo (I will add these photos next week). 
   This is a big issue: Should we, as an Owens adjunct instructor and photojournalism student, inform the Owens facility management of this particular building regarding this safety issue? This is when the Independence from Faction chapter helps. Even though we're Owens employees and students, I believe we're still obligated to report the truth. 
   Another issue: Should we turn it into the school paper, The Outlook, in our effort to expose the problem? Is it even a problem? This is where verification really matters. We shouldn't jump to the conclusion that this is a fire hazard until we talk to the proper authorities. Perhaps the box is water proof and not an issue. 
   These are all good questions that are ripe for discussion in our next class. It covers at least three elements of journalism: 
1. Journalism's first obligation is to the truth;
2. Its first loyalty is to its citizens;
3. Its practitioners have an obligation to exercise their personal conscience.
   This is a good teaching moment, indeed.

Saliency and Social Responsibility

   My Intro to Photojournalism students took their 20-point law and ethics test yesterday. I'm proud to announce that every student got a A!
   Here's one of the questions and a sampling of their answers:
Name two reasons it's important for photojournalists to be accurate and truthful when covering assignments:

• as a social responsibility -  the people want true facts; 
• to show truth so society can make a judgement from our own presumed level of truth; 
• our credibility as journalists is important, so we must keep ourselves at a higher standard.

   To appreciate these answers, know that none of them, at this point, have a desire to be in the news business. The class is a requirement for commercial art majors -  so here they are, learning how to Photoshop out blemishes in one class and being told they absolutely can't do that in mine. 

   Are they being taught to be schizo? Not at all. My goal is to teach them the difference between commercial photography and photojournalism. We, as journalism educators, must understand that our future news makers are products of this social media phenomenon that grows faster than we can keep up with it. 

   So, while journalism majors learn how to write stories that are salient, others, like my commercial photography majors, are learning that journalism is a social responsibility. 

   This point is made by Michael Gartner, Pulitzer laureate, former president of the American Society of Newspaper Editors and of NBC News, who proposed journalism education not for prospective journalists but for citizens, so they can arm themselves against shoddy work. 

   My point, exactly.