The Elder has run across something remarkably familiar. (I love getting Z-mail!) I saw these photos when they came across the wires, and didn't think anything of it. After all, blatant emotionalism for the sake of the camera is not exactly unheard of in the Palestinian territories...
Here's what the controversy is about:
A Palestinian man shouts as he carries a wounded boy after an Israeli air strike at Hamas Executive Force position in the central Gaza strip May 25, 2007.Israeli aircraft fired missiles into the central Gaza Strip on Friday, hitting a position used by the ruling Hamas Islamist movement, residents said. REUTERS/Ibraheem Abu Mustafa (GAZA)
And here's how photos like this happen:
A Palestinian boy runs as a missile fired by an Israeli aircraft explodes next to him and others after they gathered at the scene of an earlier airstrike on a Hamas base in Nusseirat, central Gaza Strip, Friday, May 25, 2007. An Israeli airstrike hit a Hamas training center south of Gaza City on Friday, destroying the compound and lightly injuring at least three, witnesses said. (AP Photo/Adel Hana)
Pretty straightforward, I'd say. I don't think the scene is staged in any way—it's entirely plausible that the boy, if standing in a similar position to the photo above, would be hit by flying debris, without necessarily being covered in dust. Are the photographers trying to put it together as an emotional, dramatic scene? Absolutely. But I don't think for a moment that they set this man up to running around screaming... that's something that the locals seem to do on their own accord. For the cameras, of course.
Of course, it is pretty disturbing to see all of the the photographers lining up like lemmings, vying to capture their own "Pulitzer" moment.
Can you imagine how much better journalism would be if journalists would pay as much attention to the truth as they did to getting glitzy awards?
I've rounded up all of the photos I could find on the wires below the fold.
Kaboom!
See this top picture? Debris.
Smoke rise from a Hamas Executive Force position after an Israeli air strike in the central Gaza strip May 25, 2007. Israeli aircraft fired missiles into the central Gaza Strip on Friday, hitting a position used by the ruling Hamas Islamist movement, residents said. REUTERS/Ibraheem Abu Mustafa (GAZA)
Bonus points will go, of course, to any reader who can identify any of the actors involved in the Screaming Carrying Run [Update:—Haha, yeah, that's the best name for this phenomena that I could come up with at the time... I'll do better next time, I swear! Many thanks to Charles for the linkage in spite of the silly name...] in any of the other photographs...
Palestinians run as a missile fired by an Israeli aircraft explodes next to them after they gathered at the scene of an earlier air strike on a Hamas base in Nusseirat, central Gaza Strip, Friday, May 25, 2007. An Israeli air strike hit a Hamas training center south of Gaza City on Friday, destroying the compound and lightly injuring at least three, witnesses said. (AP Photo/Adel Hana)
Smoke rise as Palestinians run for cover after an Israeli air strike at Hamas Executive Force position in the central Gaza strip May 25, 2007. Israeli aircraft fired missiles into the central Gaza Strip on Friday, hitting a position used by the ruling Hamas Islamist movement, residents said. REUTERS/Ibraheem Abu Mustafa (GAZA)
Palestinians run as smoke rises from a missile fired by an Israeli aircraft after they gathered at the scene of an earlier airstrike on a Hamas base in Nusseirat, central Gaza Strip, Friday , May 25, 2007. An Israeli airstrike hit a Hamas training center south of Gaza City on Friday, destroying the compound and lightly injuring at least three, witnesses said. (AP Photo/Adel Hana)
Palestinians run as smoke rises from a missile fired by an Israeli aircraft after they gathered at the scene of an earlier airstrike on a Hamas base in Nusseirat, central Gaza Strip, Friday May 25, 2007. An Israeli airstrike hit a Hamas training center south of Gaza City on Friday, destroying the compound and lightly injuring at least three, witnesses said. (AP Photo/Adel Hana)
Palestinians run as smoke rises from a missile fired by an Israeli aircraft after they gathered at the scene of an earlier airstrike on a Hamas base in Nusseirat, central Gaza Strip, Friday , May 25, 2007. An Israeli airstrike hit a Hamas training center south of Gaza City on Friday, destroying the compound and lightly injuring at least three, witnesses said. (AP Photo/Adel Hana)
Smoke rises as Palestinians run for cover after an Israeli air strike on a Hamas Executive Force position in the central Gaza strip May 25, 2007. Israeli aircraft fired missiles into the central Gaza Strip on Friday, hitting a position used by the ruling Hamas Islamist movement, residents said. REUTERS/Ibraheem Abu Mustafa (GAZA)
A Palestinian boy runs as a missile fired by an Israeli aircraft explodes next to him and others after they gathered at the scene of an earlier airstrike on a Hamas base in Nusseirat, central Gaza Strip, Friday, May 25, 2007. An Israeli airstrike hit a Hamas training center south of Gaza City on Friday, destroying the compound and lightly injuring at least three, witnesses said. (AP Photo/Adel Hana)
Palestinians run as smoke rises from a missile fired by an Israeli aircraft after they gathered at the scene of an earlier airstrike on a Hamas base in Nusseirat, central Gaza Strip, Friday, May 25, 2007. An Israeli airstrike hit a Hamas training center south of Gaza City on Friday, destroying the compound and lightly injuring at least three, witnesses said. (AP Photo/Adel Hana)
Time for the Show
Believe me, if the locals had a better track record of honesty in front of the press, or if the press had the integrity to say "no" to sensationalistic (but false) stories, sites like mine wouldn't exist.
A Palestinian man runs with an injured boy after an Israeli missile strike on a Hamas base after they gathered at the scene of an earlier airstrike in Nusseirat, central Gaza Strip, Friday May 25, 2007. An Israeli airstrike hit a Hamas training center south of Gaza City on Friday, destroying the compound and lightly injuring at least three, witnesses said. (AP Photo/Adel Hana)
A Palestinian evacuates a wounded boy after an Israeli air strike at Hamas Executive Force position in the central Gaza strip May 25, 2007. Israeli aircraft fired missiles into the central Gaza Strip on Friday, hitting a position used by the ruling Hamas Islamist movement, residents said. REUTERS/Ibraheem Abu Mustafa (GAZA)
A Palestinian man runs with an injured boy after an Israeli missile strike on a Hamas base after they gathered at the scene of an earlier airstrike on the area in Nusseirat, central Gaza Strip, Friday , May 25, 2007. An Israeli airstrike hit a Hamas training center south of Gaza City on Friday, destroying the compound and lightly injuring at least three, witnesses said. (AP Photo/Majed Hamdan)
A Palestinian man runs with an injured boy after an Israeli missile strike on a Hamas base after they gathered at the scene of an earlier airstrike in the area in Nusseirat, central Gaza Strip, Friday , May 25, 2007. An Israeli airstrike hit a Hamas training center south of Gaza City on Friday, destroying the compound and lightly injuring at least three, witnesses said. (AP Photo/Adel Hana)
A Palestinian man runs with an injured boy after an Israeli missile strike on a Hamas base after they gathered at the scene of an earlier airstrike on the area in Nusseirat, central Gaza Strip, Friday , May 25, 2007. An Israeli airstrike hit a Hamas training center south of Gaza City on Friday, destroying the compound and lightly injuring at least three, witnesses said. (AP Photo / Adel Hana)
Copycats
Just like the fun didn't stop until we went through a hundred "Friday the 13th" movies, the wonders never cease in the Palestinian territories. Here are some other locals trying to "yuk it up" for the cameras:
Palestinians carry an injured man as smoke rises from an Israeli missile strike on a Hamas base after they gathered at the scene of an earlier airstrike on the area in Nusseirat, central Gaza Strip, Friday, May 25, 2007. An Israeli airstrike hit a Hamas training center south of Gaza City on Friday, destroying the compound and lightly injuring at least three, witnesses said. (AP Photo/Majed Hamdan)
Palestinians evacuate a wounded man after an Israeli air strike at Hamas Executive Force position in the central Gaza strip May 25, 2007. Israeli aircraft fired missiles into the central Gaza Strip on Friday, hitting a position used by the ruling Hamas Islamist movement, residents said. REUTERS/Ibraheem Abu Mustafa (GAZA)
Tags: adel hana ibraheem abu mustafa majed hamdan hamas AP REUTERS #Intifada
Comments:
#2 Brian C. Ledbetter 30-May-2007
Thank you for sharing that excellent observation with us, Veronica! To anyone who needs further elaboration, please do click on her "Homepage" link, which will take you to a rather interesting article on "Oriental imagination," which plays a large part in shaping our front-page news today.
Most Respectfully,
Brian
Most Respectfully,
Brian
The children rushed off to collect their figs, and the man, pleased with his invention, went back to his couch. But just as he was about to drop off, a troublesome thought aroused him: "Here I am, lying around, when there are free figs to be had in the marketplace!"
arabs are like that, you tell him it is a bird, he tell you it is a goat, you tell him it is a bird, he tell you it is a goat, the bird flew and he still tell you it is a goat.