This weekend I spent a good deal of time looking at various photo essays having to do with foreclosures and the current economic crisis in the U.S. After a while, I became numb to the message because it was so repetitious. It seemed as everyone were jumping on the same bandwagon: This current economic downturn inordinately affected the lower class and the government is not doing anything about it. I saw an almost endless stream photos of houses that have obviously been abandoned for years and years. These houses and their stories had nothing to do with the current economic crisis.
Specifically, I watched two photos essays by Magnum photographer, Bruce Gliden: Detroit: The Troubled City and Foreclosures. Both of them bordered on serious propaganda, IMHO, but I would guess that they reflected his (political) view of what was going on in America. These were not the only two that I viewed. However, I don’t think that the ones that I viewed were representative of the general population. There are more than poor folks that are affected.
I guess that my family would be classified as middle to upper middle class. We certainly live in a middle class neighborhood. I can think of 4 houses right around my street that have been abandoned and subsequently foreclosed upon. One of the neighbors I knew on a first name basis. The others I did not know, but the houses are still in good shape and have sat for quite a while with ‘bank auction’ signs or sheriff notices posted on them as having been abandoned; however, those don’t make such a good story as the big bad corporation taking advantage of the poor, the black, the undereducated, the foreigner, the downtrodden, etc.
Perhaps, though, it is simply me looking down from my ivory tower and not seeing what is truly happening. But, I think that it affects many more people than are being represented by photo and video essays that I’ve seen and that it is going to take a lot more than billions of tax dollars to make things right.
Related posts:
6 Responses to “A view from the ivory tower?”
Sorry, the comment form is closed at this time.
I remember 6 months ago seeing articles decrying the complete lack of any sort of photojournalistic coverage of this compared to say the FSA images from the Depression (people being too used to living in an instant-on internet age I suppose)
But now we are awash. Good photojournalism has an angle, the photographer’s view is in there. You aren’t ever going to see unbiased work that is any good (though there is this perpetual odd idea in the US that journalists are supposed to be inhuman and unbiased, that I’ve never really gotten to grips with)
Editing, and lying by omission, are the photographer’s stock-in-trade.
The other thought that strikes me is, if you see this omission in the documentation of this period in history, perhaps you might be just the perfect person to go and fill it?
@Gordon: Leave it to you to come up with the solution. I thought about it, but it seems so overdone. Obviously, it would probably be for myself only. I just don’t know how interested I am in doing it.
Great topic.
It comes down to time-worn elements of a rousing good story, doesn’t it? Innocent and helpless good guys assailed by wicked, mustache-twirling bad guys. Drama.
I have never believed any journalists check their point of view at the door when they go to work, much less photojournalists. I love Gordon’s statement, “Editing, and lying by omission, are the photographer’s stock-in-trade.” Amen.
What’s wacky is this notion that the moment someone becomes a critic of any sort, they achieve this magical objectivity. It’s a pipe dream and it’s sad that so many in our culture buy into the dream. I also agree whole-heartedly with Gordon that this would make a terrific project and wow, would you bring a terrific perspective to it.
@Anita: Certainly I am not unbiased in any project that I could even conceive of doing. However, I would hope that I would not be over-the-top, but who is to say what that is. I’m sure that if I got my teeth sank into some cause that I really believed in that I could “lean” very far in that direction!
Here Here!!!
Great pic Paul.
Why should the Govt help poorer people when they can force them out and big builders can built big multi-million $$ homes? I have great hopes for our current President whereas things will change regarding this. I’d also like to see the Booze and Tobacco companies stop putting their billboard ads up in areas that don’t have over 45K per year incomes.
It’s a shame the way we treat our brothers and sisters for a dollar, for the CEO and for the Shareholders.
When I first became Ill the medical bills were killing me and things got very tight. I worked it out but was allowed to from creditors. I always knew I would not have had that opportunity if I was not a pale face. I just knew it.
Wonderful Writing here paul. I’m proud your becoming my friend.
T
@Tom: Your comment about the billboards reminded me of something. I have a rather wide range of musical tastes. I like old school hip hop as well as classical. I don’t think that you could get any further apart in musical tastes. Before the advent of satellite radio, I used to listen to local radio. When they would play commercials, I would flip to another preset.
One day, when I was living in Dallas, TX, I heard an advertisement on the classical radio station. The advertisement was for renting, leasing, or owning a BMW. The next commercial had to do with purchasing a grand piano. When I flipped to the hip hop station, the advertisements were for beer, or malt liquor, followed closely by and advertisement for a bail bondsman. How sad was that; however, I understood that neither advertisement would probably have sold much on the other station, unfortunately.
I think that the middle and upper middle class neighborhoods put in lots of ordinances that don’t allow booze and tobacco advertising in their neighborhoods. Because I lived in a really poor, high crime area going up, I don’t really believe in the victim roll; however, it is obvious who the tobacco and booze companies are targeting. Interestingly, now that I listen to satellite radio, it’s interesting to see what they advertise on the Blue Collar Comedy channel: Lots of sex toys and male enhancement drugs!