Join the BDC for a conversation and book signing with author and educator, Dr. Lauren Walsh, as she discusses her new book Through the Lens: The Pandemic and Black Lives Matter, in conversation with Washington Post visuals editor Natalia Jiménez.
2020 was a period of groundbreaking social and political upheaval, in combination with a colossal epidemiological crisis—and it urgently redefined the working conditions of photojournalists. The historic 2020 Black Lives Matter protests and the devastating Covid-19 pandemic presented unique challenges for photojournalism, forcing photographers into a terrain defined by new ethical, technological, and safety (emotional and physical) concerns, as well as innovative attacks on press freedom.
Through a series of interviews—with top photographers who covered 2020’s biggest crises, as well as key photo editors who grappled with these unprecedented obstacles inside the newsroom—Through the Lens: The Pandemic and Black Lives Matter unpacks the industry’s most critical debates as it sheds light on the experiences and thought processes of the visual journalists themselves. Importantly, this book encourages readers to consider the efforts behind the camera lens: the challenges and risks visual journalists face to bring us the news in pictures.
Promo photo by Yong Kim/Philadelphia Inquirer