A great start to a Saturday morning is to sit down at the computer with a nice espresso and view the winning images from World Press Photo 2009. Pietro Masturzo’s image of women shouting in protest from the rooftops of Tehran was declared photo of the year. The image is shot from an adjacent rooftop, and we cannot see what they are reacting to. But given the context of the story – that all form of protest in Iran is illegal, that footage of the demonstrations that did make it out of Iran was done so mostly by citizen journalists (i.e. via mobile phone uploads to social networking sites), the image alludes to the heroism in those who chose to voice their discontent against the regime of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. (The timing of the WPP announcement, February 11, also marks the 31st anniversary of the overthrow of the Shah of Iran which led to an Islamic republic. Keep your eyes peeled.)
The jury decided to grant a special mention to a frame grab of the famous Youtube video of Neda Agha-Soltan’s blood covered face as she lay dying on the street. WPP quotes jury member David Griffin of National Geographic as saying: “I am pleased that World Press Photo has provided an avenue for non-professional images that have a significant impact on the historical visual record.” The rise of the citizen journalist? I think so.
What impresses me with the jury’s selection this year is a nod to the tradition of narrative storytelling – missing is the stylized, hand-of-God influence that has pervaded (in my opinion) the last few years of images. This year’s selection seems to be more driven by story than aesthetic. Nice.