Photographer Fired for Altering Picture

LOS ANGELES - The Los Angeles Times said Wednesday it fired a photographer for altering a front page photo of a British soldier and a group of Iraqi civilians.


In an editor's note in Wednesday editions, the Times said photographer Brian Walski acknowledged in a phone call from Iraq (news - web sites) that he had used a computer to combine elements of two photos to improve the composition.


Journalism ethics forbid changing the content of news photographs, and it is specifically barred in the newspaper's policy.


The two photos, taken moments apart, showed a British soldier directing Iraqi civilians to protect themselves from possible Iraqi fire on the outskirts of Basra. Only after the altered photo appeared Monday did editors notice that some civilians in the background appeared twice, the Times said.


Messages left early Wednesday for two Times representatives were not immediately returned.


All three photos — the two originals and the altered photo — were published by the Times on Wednesday.

Walski had been with the Times since 1998.

Comment:

The LA times immediately removed the Walski doctored "photos showing Iraqis being fired upon while they were trying to seek "humantarian" aid from coalition forces outside of Basra.

The altered photos which removed were published Wednesday in the LA Times and at:
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/iraq/battle/la-033003walski-basra-pg,0,841874.photogallery

These photos were syndacated and published by hundreds of other Internet and print news sources.

Bryan Walski, a celebrated photographer for the LA Times, who is Jewish, is known for his defense of the U.S. war machine. He recently took the side of U.S. marines who wounded or killed members of Britain's ITN television newsteam at the beginning of hostilities. Walski used the tried and true Israeli "caught in the crossfire" excuse:

"Brian Walski, a Los Angeles Times photographer, was traveling nearby and offered a different perspective on the attack.

"They (the ITN news team) came across some Iraqis ... and there were Marines on the other side," he said. "And they got in-between the Marines and the Iraqis, and the Marines opened fire on the Iraqis. These guys got caught up in the crossfire."

http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/iraq/battle/la-033003walski-basra-pg,0,841874.photogallery