Using photography is an interesting way to tell a story. In the age of social media, a photo or video has become synonymous with truth. A means to prove something happened or something exists. I've seen a video of my friend, recording a concert and posting it, but the recording of the concert was bad quality and you couldn't hear the music. The point of it was to prove that he was there, that this moment happened.
Using very different ideas of photo-journalism, each panelist had some very interesting stories to tell. Joseph Garcia used his photos to focus on the lives of people who would most likely end up in jail which were gangs on the west coast, primarily Mexican. These photos often showed the misconception that gang life was just guns, money, and violence. It was shown to be actually more family oriented than anything. It wasn't trying to show that gangs aren't violent but showed that there is much more than we initially would believe, and that's using just photos without any captions.
Gabriela Bulisova showed the story of incarceration using a short video that focused on the family of those incarcerated. Initially narrated by a young child, it immediately captures the effect incarceration has on children. We get to see the story unfold through different POV which can be an effective way to tell a story. Bulisova is creating a lot of these shorts video into a single documentary. You can check out the video at https://vimeo.com/128694428
Nikki Zeichner was a former criminal defense lawyer and dealt with prisoners first hand and she photo documented the terrible conditions of the New York State prisons. Considering that not everyone is guilty or that the system can be unfair in judging African Americans, she used some photos but mostly audio clips that let inmates tell their stories of prison. The most interesting story told was of a man who is in jail for life. He wanted to know what the Internet was and how it worked. "What can you do with it. In other prisons they get email, but not here... I've never googled anything". It's interesting that the internet is being used to tell his story, sort of ironic.
You can check out her site at http://www.parolehearingdata.org/ which includes voice clips and photos.
Lorenzo Steele Jr. used his time as a corrections officer at Rikers to show the unfortunate issues that juveniles face. He went into Rikers in the early 90's with a camera ( which at the time wasn't an issues ) and took photos of just how the prison was. His photos showed how young children got caught up in the cycle of going to jail at a young age and never getting out. He uses his stories and photos to help young children in public schools to avoid making mistakes that could land them in prison. The interesting thing about Lorenzo's photos is that this can not happen anymore as they won't allow you bring a camera in now the social media quickly spreads info that certain government agencies may want to keep close to them.
I think the combined form of all the panelist's different methods of using photography or video create a compelling story about the truth of mass incarceration. It works because the journalists are trying to tell a story that needs the use of photos, blogs, and videos. The truth that too much money is spent keeping people instead of keeping them out, and impact it has on the families as well.
You can check out more info at https://www.facebook.com/events/878229315556401/
All photos were taken from https://instagram.com/everydayincarceration/
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