Judge upholds block
on autopsy images

A Florida judge on 3 July 2001 upheld a state law restricting public acess to autopsy photos, The Associated Press reported in a story on the Editor & Publisher web site.

The effort by several Florida newspapers and a television station to have the March 2001 law overturned came after the death of auto racer Dale Earnhardt during the Daytona 500.

"The right to privacy, the right to freedom of press and speech, the right of the people to have access to public records, and the right to be left alone are important rights to all who live in this county," wrote Circuit Judge Leroy Moe, according to the AP.

The Orlando Sentinel wanted an independent safety expert to review the photos to determine whether better safety equipment could have prevented the death, but the family's outrage prompted the state Legislature to make unauthorized access to the photos a felony.

Sentinel attorney David Bralow said the newspaper will appeal the decision. [2002.07] TOP

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A look at the future
of photojournalism

Technological advances and the changing face of media businesses have created new challenges for photographers, writes Peter Howe in the current issue of Columbia Journalism Review.

"In fact, photojournalism as an activity is alive and healthy; it is the market for photojournalism that is in need of life support," Howe says in his essay.

New realities photojournalists face today include the rise to power of conglomerate photo agencies Getty Images and Corbis.

Howe calls their approach "the photographic equivalent of factory, and although they provide an effective marketing system for some commercial stock photographers, to date they have proved to be least effective in the sale and promotion of photojournalism."

Despite the changing pressures photographers face, Howe says he hasn't found a lack of enthusiasm for the profession that many see as having a greater purpose. He adds, "There also still exists enormous romance swirling around the figure of the photojournalist, although the free-spirit, devil-may-care hero of legend is frequently at variance with the anxiety-ridden and impoverished reality of many of my acquaintances." [2002.07] TOP

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