Was this photograph of distraught mother intrusive?
Family and friends support Candice Bishop, the mother of three children who died in a fire Saturday, during morning service at Mount Bethel Missionary Baptist Church on Sunday morning. (Laurie Skrivan/P-D)
Monday’s St. Louis Post-Dispatch displayed a highly emotional photograph of a distraught Candice Bishop, the mother of three children who died in a fire Saturday.
Two readers called me, as front-page editor, to discuss the picture by photographer Laurie Skrivan. One wanted to know if our photographer had been welcome at the church service; she was. The other merely wanted to protest the picture as intrusive. Our director of photography, Larry Coyne, said he hadn’t heard any complaints about the picture.
More than a year ago, photographer Huy Mach wrote about his thoughts after covering the funeral of a soldier slain in Afghanistan. He wrote then:
Covering a funeral or other human tragedy is a difficult assignment to fulfill. We are constantly walking a thin line between being a story-telling photographer and an unwanted intruder. The ubiquitous footage of the paparazzi chasing their subjects down the street has been ingrained in the minds of most of us…
…The job of a news photographer is to document newsworthy stories, even when it is uncomfortable. Would it be a disservice to the soldier, his family and the community if it was not covered by the news media?
So I respect the family’s wishes, dress appropriately and try to tell the story without doing further harm.
What are your thoughts on the photograph that appeared on Monday’s front page?
Steve Parker is the deputy managing editor for news, and oversees the Post-Dispatch's front page. STLtoday's online news editors are on his newsroom team. Parker has been at the paper since September 1980. 
My understanding from the caption beneath the photo — and the accompanying news story — the “morning service” at the church was not the children’s “funeral”. So, why does this blog headline refer to it as a “funeral” photo? Wasn’t the photo taken this past Sunday? The Sunday immediately following the tragedy? Wasn’t this the usual “morning service” during which a prayer was offered for the young victims? If the news staff can’t clarify for each other the occasion, clearly the news editors’ judgment is flawed. And, yes, the photo is too intrusive. This mother’s pain should not be plastered all over the Internet. But we African-Americans, with our varying hues and tones, do make for colorful photos, don’t we? Even in print, we do. Always did. Thus, the newsman’s value of publishing it — despite it being an inconsiderate act by doing so.
Letty,
Thanks for pointing out the error. The headline and text have been changed to reflect that the photograph was taken at a Sunday church service.
Her babies are in heaven. She should rejoice..There is nothing wrong with the shot, if the photog was welcome.