Kevin Sites, der eingebettete Freelance-Reporter für den US-Sender NBC, veröffentlichte diese Woche einen offenen Brief in seinem Weblog. Sites filmte vor zwei Wochen die Erschiessung eines verwundeten Irakers in Falluja durch einen US-Soldaten. Im Brief schildert der Kriegsreporter seine Beweggründe zur Veröffentlichtung des Videos. In einem Artikel in der Herald Tribune schreibt der amerikanische Dokumentarfilmer Errol Morris zum Vorfall: «We can imagine, in the privacy of our thoughts, that war is heroic and honorable – even noble. Photography can make it difficult for us to maintain these illusions.»
Kevin Sites Blog: Open Letter to Devil Dogs of the 3.1
«Making sure you know the basis for my choices after the incident is as important to me as knowing how the incident went down. I did not in any way feel like I had captured some kind of „prize“ video. In fact, I was heartsick. (…) In war, as in life, there are plenty of opportunities to see the full spectrum of good and evil that people are capable of. As journalists, it is our job is to report both — though neither may be fully representative of those people on whom we’re reporting. (…) I knew NBC would be responsible with the footage. But there were complications. We were part of a video „pool“ in Falluja, and that obligated us to share all of our footage with other networks. I had no idea how our other „pool“ partners might use the footage. I considered not feeding the tape to the pool — or even, for a moment, destroying it. But that thought created the same pit in my stomach that witnessing the shooting had. It felt wrong. Hiding this wouldn’t make it go away.»
Die WELT hat den offenen Brief übersetzt veröffentlicht: «Ich bin kein Antikriegsaktivist»
NZZ: Ein eingebetteter Journalist in Gewissensnot
«Vielleicht ging die Armee davon aus, dass der Vorfall früher oder später sowieso an die Öffentlichkeit gelangt wäre, und griff deshalb nicht ein. In diesem Sinne liegt der eingebettete Journalist keineswegs nur im selben Bett wie die Soldaten. Und so können Verfehlungen der US-Einheiten publik werden, wie dies in andern Konflikten – etwa in Tschetschenien – nie geschähe.»
TIME: A Shot Seen Round The World
«Meanwhile, on U.S. blogs, while many have expressed a complicated compassion for the Marine and the insurgent, some have posted death threats against Sites, accusing him of betraying the Marines by sharing the footage. The accusation stands in vivid contrast to Sites‘ blog, which shows his clear affection for the troops.»
IHT: Not every picture tells the story
«Photography, because of its causal relationship to the world, seems to give us the truth or something close to the truth. I am skeptical about this for many reasons. But even if photography doesn’t give us truth on a silver platter, it does make it harder for us to deny reality.»
Siehe auch:
Der Spindoktor: Tod in der Moschee: Kevin Sites bloggt Offenen Brief