Football season is under way, but what’s going on over on the sidelines in the National Football League is getting plenty of attention from the sports photographers who cover the games, and from their bosses.
A new NFL rule requires sideline photographers to wear red security vests that have small corporate logos of Canon and Reebok on them.
The vests will let security people know that whoever’s wearing one is allowed near the field. But wearing vests with logos on them goes too far, many photographers say.
Many think the rule flies in the face of a key ethical standard in the news business that separates news coverage from advertising.
Despite an official objection from the 8,000-member National Press Photographers Association, the NFL is standing firm. This forces photographers to do something they consider unethical, association Executive Director Jim Straight said.
“As journalists, they shouldn’t have anything to do with advertising,” he said in an interview for this column.
In its response to the photographers association, the NFL said the logos are not advertisements because Reebok makes the vest, Canon pays for them and the logos are small.
“Both logos are directly related to the manufacture of the vest. Given this, it is inaccurate to characterize them as advertising messages sold to NFL sponsors or others,” NFL Vice President of Public relations Greg Aiello said in a letter to association President Tony Overman.
Overman responded:
“Canon paid for the vests. Putting their name on the vests is solely to give them exposure for their role in funding. That is not manufacturing. That’s sponsorship. That’s advertising.”
Straight said whoever’s wearing the vests at NFL games is a walking advertisement, no matter how big or small the logos are.
“It doesn’t help them gain the public’s trust if they’re wearing advertising,” Straight said of photographers.
Protests not sanctioned
In a letter to its members, the photographers group said it did not endorse photographers trying to cover up the advertising or wearing the vests inside out as a form of protest. The association advised members to consult with editors at their media outlet before taking any protest action.
“Only by carefully considering all of the ethical considerations as well as the policies of your employers can you uphold the integrity of our profession while still carrying out your assignment,” the letter said.
Straight said he believed most photographers will still cover the games, and won’t have any choice but to wear the vests, though some may use tape to hide the logos.
