Compelling photos

No amount of aversion or confrontation will retrieve the lives shattered and the souls lost in a tragic event such as an automobile accident, but our definition of compassion and continual understanding of the uniqueness of life depends on a faithful presentation of the magnitude of events.

Sometimes photographs are bold, challenging, grim, graphic and inspiring. Whether on Page One or Page A6, they collectively define our experiences as citizens, and workers, and by doing so point the way for us so that we are not jaded by events around us.

Compelling photographs, when selected by editors for their newsworthiness within established guidelines of integrity and dignity, are informative and necessary in modern age in a way I believe that video broadcasts can never equal. The moment the picture is in front of us, alienation with our present surroundings stops and we are allowed to measure ourselves in ways that are as unique and varied as the photo itself. This experience assists us in favoring objectivity in the face of conjecture, reason in the face of violence, and compassion where fear and loss are overwhelming. Greg Gilka Machias