Protest Photography and Consideration of Privacy

A qualitative analysis of BLM protest photos published by The Star Tribune, The Minnesota Daily, The Oregonian and the PSU Vanguard

By Ella Banken

Research Question: To what extent do student newspapers in Minneapolis and Portland and The Oregonian and The Star Tribune differ in their publication approach of protest photography with consideration of privacy due to the rise of the Black Lives Matter protests in Portland and Minneapolis?

Protests began after George Floyd was killed in May in Minneapolis, and spread through the nation. Almost six months later, protests are still being held, if not at a lower frequency. Portland has seen almost 150 days of protests, and has held prolonged media attention. 

Since May, the ethics of protest photojournalism has been the subject of many conversations, between co-workers and nationally. Police have used images published by news organizations, as well as photos on civilian’s social media to investigate and/or arrest protestors. This has created a heightened awareness of the impact of photojournalism, and photo publication in general. Many activists have urged news organizations and protests alike to not post photos of unobscured faces on line. 

Those in favor of publishing unobstructed faces argue that journalists play the role of documentarians. A quote by Eric Baradat, a Photo Editor for Agence France-Presse, in an article by the Cut reads, 

“If you don’t have the faces of the protesters in 1968 in Prague, you don’t have a story. If you don’t have the people trying to take down the wall in Berlin in 1989, you don’t have a story. If you don’t have the faces of the protesters in Tiananmen Square, you don’t show to the rest of the world the reality of the situation.”

Others argue that posting photos without considering the impact of the images on individuals is directly harmful. Shortly after protests escalated in Minneapolis, The Authority Collective published a series of guidelines for documenting protests. They did not condone the practice of blurring faces or other forms of digital manipulation, but they encouraged heightened consideration, awareness, and communication with subjects. 

Within this conversation, there are a few different schools of thought. Some argue for posting all protest photos, some argue for publishing photos that don’t obviously identify protestors, and others go as far as to digitally alter photos to protect identities. This research will analyze the approaches taken by different tiers of news organizations. The Minnesota Daily and the PSU Vanguard are two student newspapers in Minneapolis and Portland, respectively, that will be reviewed. The Star Tribune and The Oregonian will be reviewed as well, as the largest newspapers in each city.