Photojournalists and page designers carry heavy responsibilities in this age of heightened dependence on visual elements for a quick, at-a-glance flow of news and information.
Their work on any given day (or minute, when updating Web sites) gives readers a crucial first impression of the Star-Telegram’s news judgment and how it practices its art on newsprint and in cyberspace.
But an old reality persists: Readers don’t always like what they see, sometimes for surprising reasons.
For instance, some of the most poignant and compelling coverage this year flowed out of stories and photos from the dedication in San Antonio of the Center for the Intrepid — a $40 million rehabilitation center paid for with donations from 600,000 Americans to provide high-tech care for severely wounded veterans, particularly those of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Along with a 10-photo color slide show on www.star-telegram.com, staff photographer Tom Pennington put the event in heart-piercing context with pictures of the veterans in attendance — from heavily scarred amputees in wheelchairs to others who struggled to walk with canes or crutches.
Particularly moving was Pennington’s Page 1 photo of Master Sgt. Daniel Robles seated in a wheelchair, his cammies tucked neatly around his footless left leg as his 5-year-old daughter, Mary, shyly leaned against him while comforted by her mom. All of the pictures in that Jan. 30 package carried sobering impact.
On Sunday, columnist Bob Ray Sanders paid tribute to the veterans, revisiting the dedication with terse comment and a half-page package of more photos by Pennington, who worked three extended assignments in Afghanistan and two in Iraq.
“When words are inadequate,” Sanders wrote, “there’s no need to speak. … we owe [the veterans] more than we can ever repay …. For too long, [they] have been out of view.”
The work generally drew applause from readers — but not all of them.
Pennington’s photo of Robles was cropped at his chest, riveting attention on key realities in his story: his sacrifice and his family’s love and loyalty. “Please put a face on this hero,” one reader objected, “and run the full photo showing his brave face and an apology for focusing on his injury!”
Pennington said his photo spoke with symbols. “This soldier represents the thousands of maimed soldiers that have returned from Iraq and Afghanistan.” I’d add that Pennington’s idea reflected the selflessness with which combat heroes fight and die — a virtue Pennington knows about from his war-zone assignments.
Sanders’ half-page package, headlined “Heroes for All to See,” needed plenty of space in the Sunday section for state and local news. A wide-open Page 6B was perfect, and the design gave the top half to the five-photo report, with other content below.
A longtime subscriber welcomed Sanders’ package but considered the page layout contemptible because it placed beneath the heroes a two-column collection of the fugitives listed in Crime Stoppers.
He wrote: “Whose idea was it to put pictures of wounded heroes of the Iraq War on the same page with Crime Stoppers? Doesn’t anyone edit your paper anymore? Whoever put pictures of our finest, bravest young Americans on the same page with (suspected) rapists, drug dealers and armed robbers needs sensitivity training at least, and serious psychiatric help at most.”
My first reaction to the juxtaposition came from a different perspective.
In my view, the design had captured a stunning contrast in what it means to be an American. Page 6B spoke to me about how we are blessed with freedom to spend our lives in many ways. Those horribly wounded veterans had freely answered their country’s call to service and fought for freedom — even the freedom of fellow Americans who choose to squander their lives as crooks and sexual deviants, if they wish.
Sunday’s headline played to that thought and the entire body of coverage of the Center for the Intrepid. Whether welcomed or condemned, realities were indeed there for all to see in photos and design.
