‘I think it’s quite sad that many Americans believe that photos submitted by unknown readers are as worthy as a photo taken by a professional photojournalist steeped in journalistic ethics, and with years of training and a proven track record.

I’ve been doing interviews with Iraqi photogs here in Baghdad and some of their colleagues have literally given their lives to bring home the truth.—the Iraqi wire photogs talk about the truth all the time. The Reuters operation here had four staff killed and four wounded in the war. That’s real sacrifice and it makes me furious that many of our citizens have a low opinion of what we do, and that they feel a blog or a photo of unknown provenance—by someone who never spent a day in the field, or may have god-knows-what motivations—is as relevant as good journalism.

It’s not and it never will be.’

Michael Kamber