ZEKE Magazine: Fall 2021, Preview edition

But before delving into how documentary
photography is evolving, it is essential
to first address the fight to change
the internal practices and structure of the
photo industry itself.
One of the biggest problems in
photography is the widespread percep-
Years ago,
tion among audiences that photographs
during an artist talk at a journalism
conference, I stated that I the extent to which a photographer’s
don’t lie. Most people don’t understand
don’t believe documentary photographs
create social change. A consume. This knee-jerk assumption of
personal biases impact the images we
colleague stood up and interrupted my objectivity allows audiences to accept
talk to disagree with me. Our impromptu an image as truth: forming hard-andfast
opinions about events and cultures.
debate--across an audience of photographers
and journalism students--exemplifies Without critical assessment from the viewers,
the photographer has tremendous
an important dialog within our industry
that is pushing the boundaries of how power over the value viewers assign to
photography is created and used. Our the lives of the individuals pictured. Such
power and representation have plagued
the industry since the advent of photography
as a medium. Recent momentum
in acknowledging and changing these
practices prompted the formation of
collectives such as Women Photograph,
MFON, Diversify Photo, Ingenious
Photograph, and the Authority Collective,
to name a few. Meaningful reflection
about representation, connection, and
accountability are imperative starting
points for anyone assigning, publishing,
Photography &
By Emily Schiffer
disagreement hinged on different definitions
of what “social change” looks like
and means. I was asserting that images
create awareness--which unreliably
evokes empathy, shifts mindsets, and
inspires action. He was arguing that
empathy is change. We were both right.
Differentiating between raising awareness,
fostering empathy, inspiring action,
and changing conditions enables photographers
to precisely define their goals
and approaches for individual projects.
A whole world opens up when
we think of images as the start
of a creative process—rather
than the end goal.
unchallenged authority creates a dangerous
paradigm. Historically, photographers
have been overwhelmingly white
and male, which means they produced
images of cultures, communities, and
people that were not familiar to them.
On top of that, editors, curators, critics,
and other industry gatekeepers have
also historically been white and male,
which further normalizes the white male
gaze within the industry writ large, and
silencing other perspectives. This set-up
causes glaring omissions in documentary
narratives. Practically speaking,
omissions amount to erasure, which is a
quintessential tactic of colonialism and
oppression. Despite important changes
in who is able to access the profession,
and in how we think about photography,
statistics show that the demographics of
the industry remain largely unchanged.
In 2020, 80% of A1 images in leading
U.S. and European newspapers were
created by male photographers. Issues of
exhibiting, or creating photographs, let
alone those attempting to create social
change through photography.
Sometimes, viewers need to physically
see the errors in the dominant narrative
in order to shift their mindset. Artists such
as Alexandra Bell, Wendy Red Star,
and Tonika Lewis Johnson visualize the
crisis of biased representation, enabling
viewers to reflect on their perceptions
of self and others. Bell redacts racist
language in New York Times articles and
sometimes changes the imagery to reflect
a more accurate depiction of the facts.
She then wheatpastes the before and
after versions of the articles onto outdoor
public walls: simultaneously holding the
media accountable, and forcing viewers
to confront their complacency when
consuming media. Similarly, Red Star
annotates photographs of Crow chiefs,
originally taken by Charles Milton Bell in
1880. Red Star uses red ink to provide
historical and contextual information,
22 / ZEKE FALL 2021