It's paradoxical, but I think the flood of images from Gaza will have the exact opposite effect. Sociology studies on risk and vulnerability from natural disasters point to a phenomenon in which the constant call for attention from news outlets (don't know of any updated studies that consider social media) ends up "numbing" the public. For example, constant reminders of the "apocalyptic" menace of an active volcano decrease the perception of vulnerability in direct proportion to the time such reports are being broadcast without a notorious change in the status of the eruption, bringing the public to react against evacuation orders and sometimes even to return to high risk areas. The information no longer draws the attention of the people in danger, it just becomes part of the background noise of everyday life.
My guess is that the expected reaction from the public will fall victim of the avalanche of content and the war will become a footnote of everyday life.
This is very much the truth sadly. I grew up in Northern Ireland during the 1970s and 1980s. I lived in a largely safe area of a safe, maybe even boring, town. So while I was mostly removed from the worst of the effects of the Troubles, the constant drumbeat of bombings and shootings reported almost daily caused it to be almost unreal, just background noise that didn’t really impact me aside from the occasional inconvenience and odd incursion into our quiet little neighborhood. You actually do get numbed to it after a while, unless it is directly impacting you often enough.
Needless to say, for those in the thick of it, it was very real indeed.
I agree. I keep thinking about the ongoing horrors in Syria, which has been referred to, prior to these tragedies, as the most well-documented genocide in history... a fact which has not seemed to help actual Syrians at all.
Shall we mention Jan 6 as the most documented insurrection in the history of the United States, yet a major political party includes lawmakers and presidential candidates who claim it was a hoax, or was misrepresented by the media, or was an inside job?. Tragically, documentary influence is diminishing due to factors far outside its domain. Yet...witness we must. Else our basic humanity will be called into question.
These are so hard to look at, and I struggle to find a balance between honoring/acknowledging victims of violence, and protecting my own sanity. To not look away, but to also not be paralyzed and disturbed.
It's paradoxical, but I think the flood of images from Gaza will have the exact opposite effect. Sociology studies on risk and vulnerability from natural disasters point to a phenomenon in which the constant call for attention from news outlets (don't know of any updated studies that consider social media) ends up "numbing" the public. For example, constant reminders of the "apocalyptic" menace of an active volcano decrease the perception of vulnerability in direct proportion to the time such reports are being broadcast without a notorious change in the status of the eruption, bringing the public to react against evacuation orders and sometimes even to return to high risk areas. The information no longer draws the attention of the people in danger, it just becomes part of the background noise of everyday life.
My guess is that the expected reaction from the public will fall victim of the avalanche of content and the war will become a footnote of everyday life.
This is very much the truth sadly. I grew up in Northern Ireland during the 1970s and 1980s. I lived in a largely safe area of a safe, maybe even boring, town. So while I was mostly removed from the worst of the effects of the Troubles, the constant drumbeat of bombings and shootings reported almost daily caused it to be almost unreal, just background noise that didn’t really impact me aside from the occasional inconvenience and odd incursion into our quiet little neighborhood. You actually do get numbed to it after a while, unless it is directly impacting you often enough.
Needless to say, for those in the thick of it, it was very real indeed.
I agree. I keep thinking about the ongoing horrors in Syria, which has been referred to, prior to these tragedies, as the most well-documented genocide in history... a fact which has not seemed to help actual Syrians at all.
Shall we mention Jan 6 as the most documented insurrection in the history of the United States, yet a major political party includes lawmakers and presidential candidates who claim it was a hoax, or was misrepresented by the media, or was an inside job?. Tragically, documentary influence is diminishing due to factors far outside its domain. Yet...witness we must. Else our basic humanity will be called into question.
.. i’m a 72 year old photographer & artist.. a Canadian city & farm kid grown up.. somewhat
My inspiration was/is W Eugene Smith - why ? Minimata & The Walk To Paradise Garden
I chose only the latter.. as an orphan with older sister.. Lacked the courage of the former
My first SLR photo ? My sister & husband together at their backyard wedding reception
The moment the shutter blinked & that signature sound.. magical ! Have never seen the photo !
I’ve avoided the obvious imagery of this War .. but relented briefly this morning.. here, only
Will reserve comment thanks.. aside from - I will return here.. most certainly.. thank you 🦎🏴☠️
These are so hard to look at, and I struggle to find a balance between honoring/acknowledging victims of violence, and protecting my own sanity. To not look away, but to also not be paralyzed and disturbed.