Photojournalism In Vietnam War Essay

Photojournalism has the potential to have a substantial effect on the world (ref). It can relay ideas of raw truth in an attempt to spark a reaction in society (ref). French photographer Marc Riboud is well known for his powerful images depicting human reaction during war times. This essay will argue that Riboud’s image of Jan Kasmir protesting the Vietnam War carries a subjective bias that has the ability to arouse scepticism around war and impact societies interpretations of war. It will focus on the themes of war photojournalism and objectivity; more specifically how non-objective images can be more truthful and have a more significant societal impact.

War photojournalism is a large medium being explored today (ref). Lilie Chouliaraki states that war journalism is rooted in the idea that misery deserves “pity” from society and that this ideology informs the way war photojournalism is sold (ref47). This is disproved with Riboud’s photo, which highlights the strength of individual voices amongst misery. Susan Sontag explored the …show more content…
“Flower Child” sparked a battle to end the US involvement in the Vietnam War, and has become a universally recognised symbol of the anti-war movement (ref). The essay also discussed how despite still being a “war” image, the photo does not evoke sympathy out of the audience, but instead evokes a call to action (ref), which plays a large role in the impact it had towards getting the public to fight for change. The idea of subjectivity and objectivity in images is explored, and how subjective photos are more manipulative, especially when big action is called for. Riboud’s image will go down in history as one of the most influential anti-war photos due to the effect it had on the public, and it will live on as a symbol of standing up against the main body of

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