I have used this blog to write mostly about issues relating to the media and this topic is so timely, I had to get it in.

I was asked recently, “When, if ever, is it appropriate to use photographs or video of dead American troops?”

During my 13 years as a journalist I have worked in five newsrooms and this question has been discussed many times, especially since September 11^th.

The issue came up this week because of the death of Army Specialist Aaron Aamot.  Aamot is a Ferndale High School graduate and the first Whatcom County soldier to be killed in the War in Afghanistan.

A local journalist/blogger provided a link to a national news website that posted photographs of the last minutes of Specialist Aamot’s life and that of his comrade.  The photos show his military vehicle overturned and on fire.  It also shows the mortally wounded troops pinned under the vehicle and rescue efforts to save them.  And finally there is a photograph of two body bags.

There are no hard and fast rules when it comes to the usage of graphic photos like these.

Wide shots are generally accepted but shots of bodies or body parts are usually frowned upon.  News directors and reporters usually ask themselves several questions before making a decision.  Is this video or photograph absolutely critical to the story?  Does it add an important element to the story that can’t be achieved through other means?  Can the story be told without the images?

The day after September 11^th, my news director at the time, banned all video of the airplanes hitting the towers, the towers falling, people jumping to their deaths and victims on stretchers.  He said it was out of respect to the victims and their families.  When I worked along the Texas/Mexico border my news director at the NBC station had a ban on all photos/video showing bodies, body parts, body bags and/or blood.  And in that situation we were dealing with mostly drug cartel members and murderers.  So, if there was a ban on the deaths of those types of individuals what do you think would be the protocol on the deaths of American heroes?

I am fortunate that I’ve worked with news directors and editors that don’t believe in, “if it bleeds it leads.”

If it were my story and my decision in this situation, I would likely have used the battlefield shots and stay clear of the more sensitive photographs.  Specialist Aamot was just killed last week, he hasn’t even been laid to rest.  His family is going through the unimaginable right now and images of their loved one on the battlefield can only cause more discomfort.

But what do you think?  Are these photos appropriate?