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The question that pf members were asked was hypothetical, 'What would you
do......in 10 secs?'
I guess within that specific time limit we might all be just considering
our options.
In the present instance it appears from available reports that a fight
developed from an argument between a man who might have been drunk and another
man who showed some signs of having a psychological problem. The published photo
shows other waiting passengers to be at some distance from the men who were
heard to be arguing and seen to be fighting. Is it reasonable to blame the
other passengers for not intervening in the dispute?
The person who videoed the fracas did some good in making evidence
available to the police on which the police based an appeal for further
information from the public.
The photographer who may well not have been a professional journalist did
what he presumably thought was for the best in the minute that elapsed while the
victim was on the track.
Local circumstances may have impelled the editor of the paper to run the
story to alert all subway users of a potential danger.
The remaining question is 'was there any purpose in selecting that
particular photo?' Would some other photo of the man himself have been
more appropriate, or were there other photos of those who did try to help the
man after the train had stopped.
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Whilst it is appropriate to look at this incident from the viewpoint of a
photo journalist, a TV viewer, or a newspaper reader, it is also important to
recognise that the incident itself is tragic, and that it will have an immediate
and direct effect on at least five people, for whom we should have
sympathy and compassion.
Michael in Norwich |
