ABSTRACT
Salgado’s desire to construct a different society also compels
contemporary activist photographers to seek out the underreported
story, the story that just has to be told, the social inequity that has to be
redressed. Some continue in the black-and-white tradition; others
question the limitations of a single image on a printed page in today’s
media-saturated world where viewers are bombarded daily by images of
the most dreadful scenes and events and respond with a compassion
fatigue. Some activists experiment with new media platforms or new
storytelling formats. They do this, questioning whether an image can be
legitimate if it appears only on a computer screen. Some believe that the
photograph is only the beginning, only the means to a solution. They
routinely partner with nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) and
nonprofit organizations for funding without compromising their
photographic integrity. They create foundations to support the subjects
they photograph. They use their photographs for fund-raising to aid groups
working on the issues that were the subjects of their photographs.
