An editor at a major media outlet wants the press to stop using the iconic photograph of the assassination attempt on Donald Trump because it represents “free PR” for his campaign.
The anonymous editor said Axios that sharing the historic photograph of the former president standing after surviving the attempt on his life is “dangerous despite how good it is.”
The liberal newspaper Axios reported that several anonymous photographers told them they were concerned that the image taken by Pulitzer Prize winner Evan Fucci could become “‘photoganda’ by Trump campaign to ‘promote their agenda, despite the photographers’ intent to capture a news event’.
One photographer said the photo could become a “propaganda machine” and turn Trump into a “martyr.”
An editor at a major media outlet wants the press to stop using the iconic photo of the assassination attempt on Donald Trump because it represents “free PR” for his campaign.
A photograph of a bloodied Donald Trump with his fist raised and an American flag in the background is quickly emerging as the central image of Saturday’s shooting.
Video of the attempted murder at a Pennsylvania protest filled television screens before it was clear what had happened.
But the work of Evan Vucci of the Associated Press, Anna Moneymaker of Getty and Doug Mills of The New York Times — whose image captured apparent evidence of a bullet whizzing past Trump’s head — demonstrated the enduring power of still photography in a world driven by an onslaught of moving images.
The liberal newspaper Axios reported that several anonymous photographers told them they were concerned that the image taken by Pulitzer Prize winner Evan Fucci (pictured) could become a “photo bargain.”
Trump grabbed his right ear as the first shots rang out at 6:12 p.m.
Vucci’s image, one of many he took on Saturday, could also have political implications from many directions, as indelible images often do in the days and years after seismic events.
“Evan’s photo will undoubtedly become the definitive photo of the (assassination) attempt,” Patrick Witty, a former photo editor for Time, The New York Times and National Geographic, told the Associated Press.
“It captures a range of complex details and emotions in a single still image: the defiant raised fist, the blood, the officers clamoring to push Trump off the stage and, most importantly, the flag. That’s what elevates the photo.”
Authorities are still working to figure out how 20-year-old Thomas Crooks was able to nearly shoot Trump in the head.
Police snipers returned fire after shots were fired as Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump was speaking at a campaign event.
So far, there has been no public disclosure that the shooter left behind any writing, suicide note, social media message or any other indicator that explains his reasons for targeting Trump.
A law enforcement official briefed on the ongoing investigation told The Associated Press on condition of anonymity that Crooks’ phone had not immediately yielded any significant clues related to motive or whether he acted alone or with others.
Crooks’ political leanings were also unclear. Crooks was registered as a Republican in Pennsylvania, but federal campaign finance reports also show he donated $15 to a progressive political action committee on Jan. 20, 2021, the day Democratic President Joe Biden took office.
