The National Press Photographers Association’s Ethics Committee has released a statement related to ethical considerations that arose during the judging of the World Press Photo competition.
World Press has revealed after the judging that 20 percent of the images selected for their penultimate round were disqualified due to digital alteration. The findings were based on the forensic examination of RAW files by three experts who were commissioned by WPP. Contestants are required by WPP’s entry rules to submit RAW files when requested in order to be judged in the final round. In the WPP contest a year ago, only eight percent of the final round images were found to have been altered and were disqualified.
With NPPA on the verge of judging its own Best Of Photojournalism contest next month, NPPA’s Ethics Committee has asked for the photographers who were disqualified from World Press Photo’s final round of judging to release their eliminated images so as to engage in public discussion about what the industry’s standards are, or what the standards should become. The committee has also released a statement outlining the issues involved.
For background on the WPP ‘disqualifications’ issue, pro photographers’ website ProCounter published this story last week: Photojournalism’s integrity under fire by WPP.
