Unwritten rule

fish · 6/13/13, 1:48 AM

I'm an old school photographer. It was an unwritten rule that if you knew you had just witnessed a fatality, you quit taking pictures. If by chance you got pictures, they were trash that no one would ever see.
I ended up working in the newspaper business and as a sports guy it ticked me off if the news guys published a graphic car crash with a fatality (and I told them more than once).
I realize things are different nowadays, as everyone has a camera and you can find anything on the internet. But please, if any of you IOW faithful are at a racetrack and the worst happens, put the camera away. And please, do not do like some fool in New Jersey did and post it on twitter.

Have things changed so much that we can't show some respect?

Jim Fisher

Tim Watson · 6/13/13, 2:36 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by fish

I'm an old school photographer. It was an unwritten rule that if you knew you had just witnessed a fatality, you quit taking pictures. If by chance you got pictures, they were trash that no one would ever see.
I ended up working in the newspaper business and as a sports guy it ticked me off if the news guys published a graphic car crash with a fatality (and I told them more than once).
I realize things are different nowadays, as everyone has a camera and you can find anything on the internet. But please, if any of you IOW faithful are at a racetrack and the worst happens, put the camera away. And please, do not do like some fool in New Jersey did and post it on twitter.

Have things changed so much that we can't show some respect?

Jim Fisher

Nice post and i totally agree. My Dad has some video footage of two racing fatalities, i was at the tracks and seen them but he has never let me see the footage he shot and he is my Dad!

Cincy Dirt Bowl · 6/13/13, 5:37 AM

Yahoo has a pict on the front page
.
update as of 7:30am
Yahoo has at least taken the picture off the front page. Just the story now.

davidm · 6/13/13, 7:53 AM

Jim I agree with you 100% on this. Luckly I've never had camera in hand when something bad like this has happened.

Duke Cook Jr. · 6/13/13, 8:18 AM

local TV station is broadcasting this over and over showing a guy walking around the car. I was they would give a balance reporting, to the good times in the sport we love.

terrehautian · 6/13/13, 12:00 PM

This is similar to something I wrestled with after the Boston bombings. My job is in the TV news field and sometimes I end up out on news (it has been sports still photos, but because I can run a video camera I never know when I might be needed). On one hand, it is news and as long as it isn't showing anything graphic, it really isn't bad other then respecting the family of the fallen. On the other hand, I personally wouldn't want to see it and would probably want to help out more to the victims then anything else.

Since I have never had to witness a bad accident at a race track, even if I was doing it for work, I would probably stop taking photos/videos out of respect. If I was there for work and I edited the video, I might show the person racing but not the accident itself. If I am doing stills for personal or work, I would probably delete the photos of the accident. Personally, I hope I never have to make that decision.

Brolzy · 6/13/13, 12:40 PM

when I was shooting motorsports in the past, I always told myself that if I had shots of a fatality, I would finish the roll on the ground (was using film), and hand the roll to the authorities who investigate that stuff, no matter what else was on it. The thing about Jason's crash, it happened in NJ, and they will investigate it.

Buckeye_Openwheel · 6/13/13, 12:48 PM

Let me expound on this a little further, in a situation like last night, its an unwritten rule that you await the families announcement on the extent of the injuries. Even if you know for a fact, how badly injured someone is or in this case if they are fighting for their life. As media there is a responsibility to understand once something is put in print it could be read by anyone in the family of those affected and its your duty as media to allow that information to flow from the correct channels.
Today I feel horrible about retweeting the initial picture of the car and tweet which just started he had went for a wild ride because of the outcome. I should have thought twice about doing that, but those on the scene should have known the seriousness of the situation and not gotten on there phones and sent the image all over.

Hopefully we can all learn something this, I know I did, and I apologize to anyone who got my tweet.

My thoughts and prayers are with the leffler family today

Pete smith
Staff writer LuvRacin. com

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CTtoPA · 6/13/13, 12:50 PM

I've seen a picture of the Jimmy Bryan wreck in a newspaper, Rex Mays, videos of Jim Rigsby, Bob Sweikert, Sachs/McDonald, O'Connor, Vukovich, etc. You're documenting an event. Part of the reality of racing is that it is potentially fatal.

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johnnythunderhead · 6/13/13, 1:02 PM

I disagree respectfully/ how many times did they show dale earnhart's crash, over and over and over. not to mention dan Weldon's horrific crash. I certainly do not wish to see anything gory or graphic, but when these things happen people are curious as to how they happened, less the graphic.

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6/13/13, 5:37 AM	#3 Re: Unwritten rule
Cincy Dirt Bowl Member Join Date: Feb 2009 Posts: 81	Yahoo has a pict on the front page . update as of 7:30am Yahoo has at least taken the picture off the front page. Just the story now. _________________________________________________ Last edited by Cincy Dirt Bowl; 6/13/13 at 7:44 AM. Reason: update

6/13/13, 8:18 AM	#5 Re: Unwritten rule
Duke Cook Jr. Member Join Date: Mar 2013 Posts: 28	local TV station is broadcasting this over and over showing a guy walking around the car. I was they would give a balance reporting, to the good times in the sport we love.

6/13/13, 12:40 PM	#7 Re: Unwritten rule
Brolzy Member Join Date: Jul 2007 Posts: 143	when I was shooting motorsports in the past, I always told myself that if I had shots of a fatality, I would finish the roll on the ground (was using film), and hand the roll to the authorities who investigate that stuff, no matter what else was on it. The thing about Jason's crash, it happened in NJ, and they will investigate it.