Latest news with #VIIFoundation
Yahoo
17-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
World Press Photo suspends credit for historic 'Napalm Girl' photo
World Press Photo announced Friday it will suspend the authorship attribution of The Terror of War, also known as "Napalm Girl," the iconic photograph taken in 1972 during the Vietnam War. An independent investigation was launched by World Press Photo in January after a documentary released by The VII Foundation last year questioned whether Huỳnh Công (Nick) Út, the Associated Press staff photographer credited with the shot, actually took it. "Investigative analysis from World Press Photo indicated that, based on analysis of location, distance, and the camera used on that day, photographers Nguyễn Thành Nghệ or Huỳnh Công Phúc may have been better positioned to take the photograph than Nick Út," World Press Photo stated in a news release. "Due to this current doubt, World Press Photo has suspended the attribution to Nick Út." Út, a young Vietnamese photographer who had been an Associated Press staffer at the time the photo was taken, has long been attributed for capturing the moment children fled from a napalm bomb attack carried out by a South Vietnamese aircraft on its own troops and civilians. The photograph was awarded The World Press Photo of the Year in 1973 and a Pulitzer Prize in that same year. The Stringer, The VII Foundation's 2024 documentary, alleged that the photograph was actually taken by Nguyễn Thành Nghệ, a Vietnamese military photographer who was a stringer at the time, and was misattributed to Út. AP conducted its own nearly year-long investigation, eventually concluding that "there is not the 'definitive evidence' required by AP's standards to change the credit of the 53-year-old photograph." Bao Nguyen, The Stringer's director, issued a statement via The VII Foundation's website following World Press Photo's suspension of attribution, saying the announcement "signals a turning point." "This film is also about power – who gets to be seen, who is believed, and who gets to write history," Nguyen's statement said. "It affirms the need to look again at the stories we thought we knew." Út's lawyer, James Hornstein, has disputed the film's claims. He told the Associated Press that his client hadn't spoken to World Press Photo after some initial contact before The Stringer was released. "It seems they had already made up their mind to punish Nick Ut from the start," he said. Hornstein did not immediately respond to a request from CBC News. World Press Photo said in its release that "the photograph itself remains undisputed," stressing that the World Press Photo award it received for capturing the historic moment "remains a fact." "This remains contested history, and it is possible that the author of the photograph will never be fully confirmed. The suspension of the authorship attribution stands unless it is proved otherwise."
Yahoo
17-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
World Press Photo suspends credit for historic 'Napalm Girl' photo
World Press Photo announced Friday it will suspend the authorship attribution of The Terror of War, also known as "Napalm Girl," the iconic photograph taken in 1972 during the Vietnam War. An independent investigation was launched by World Press Photo in January after a documentary released by The VII Foundation last year questioned whether Huỳnh Công (Nick) Út, the Associated Press staff photographer credited with the shot, actually took it. "Investigative analysis from World Press Photo indicated that, based on analysis of location, distance, and the camera used on that day, photographers Nguyễn Thành Nghệ or Huỳnh Công Phúc may have been better positioned to take the photograph than Nick Út," World Press Photo stated in a news release. "Due to this current doubt, World Press Photo has suspended the attribution to Nick Út." Út, a young Vietnamese photographer who had been an Associated Press staffer at the time the photo was taken, has long been attributed for capturing the moment children fled from a napalm bomb attack carried out by a South Vietnamese aircraft on its own troops and civilians. The photograph was awarded The World Press Photo of the Year in 1973 and a Pulitzer Prize in that same year. The Stringer, The VII Foundation's 2024 documentary, alleged that the photograph was actually taken by Nguyễn Thành Nghệ, a Vietnamese military photographer who was a stringer at the time, and was misattributed to Út. AP conducted its own nearly year-long investigation, eventually concluding that "there is not the 'definitive evidence' required by AP's standards to change the credit of the 53-year-old photograph." Bao Nguyen, The Stringer's director, issued a statement via The VII Foundation's website following World Press Photo's suspension of attribution, saying the announcement "signals a turning point." "This film is also about power – who gets to be seen, who is believed, and who gets to write history," Nguyen's statement said. "It affirms the need to look again at the stories we thought we knew." Út's lawyer, James Hornstein, has disputed the film's claims. He told the Associated Press that his client hadn't spoken to World Press Photo after some initial contact before The Stringer was released. "It seems they had already made up their mind to punish Nick Ut from the start," he said. Hornstein did not immediately respond to a request from CBC News. World Press Photo said in its release that "the photograph itself remains undisputed," stressing that the World Press Photo award it received for capturing the historic moment "remains a fact." "This remains contested history, and it is possible that the author of the photograph will never be fully confirmed. The suspension of the authorship attribution stands unless it is proved otherwise."
ABC News
17-05-2025
- ABC News
Historic Vietnam War photograph attribution suspended amid authorship doubts
The World Press Photo Foundation has suspended an authorship attribution awarded over 50 years ago to an Associated Press (AP) photographer for The Terror of War — the iconic image of a girl fleeing a napalm attack during the Vietnam War. A report released by the organisation on Friday, local time, said that the decision had been made after claims were made in a recent documentary by The VII Foundation not-for-profit that American-Vietnamese AP photographer Nick Út was not the true author of the image taken in 1972. Mr Út was awarded the World Press Photo of the Year in 1973 for the image. "This prompted deep reflection at World Press Photo and a subsequent investigation between January and May 2025 in regards to the photo's authorship," a World Press Photo statement said. "In our report, we share investigative analysis that, based on analysis of location, distance, and the camera used on that day, photographers Nguyễn Thành Nghệ or Huỳnh Công Phúc may have been better positioned to take the photograph, rather than Nick Út. "Therefore, we have suspended the attribution of 'The Terror of War' to Nick Út, from today. "Importantly, the photograph itself remains undisputed, and the World Press Photo award for this significant photo of a major moment in 20th century history remains a fact. "Only the authorship is suspended and under review. This remains contested history, and it is possible that the author of the photograph will never be fully confirmed." The Amsterdam-based organisation said the two other potential authors, Mr Nghệ and Mr Phúc, were both present for the infamous scene photographed in the southern village of Trang Bang on June 8, 1972. Mr Út insisted the image was his in a February Facebook post, calling claims to the contrary "a slap in the face". World Press Photo's report adds to the muddle over an issue that has split the photographic community since the release of The VII Foundation's documentary, titled The Stringer. The photo of a naked and terrified Kim Phuc became an iconic symbol of the war's tragedy. Ms Phuc survived her injuries and is now a Canadian citizen and outspoken advocate for child war victims. After two investigations, AP said it found no definitive evidence to warrant stripping Mr Út's photo credit. The AP said it was possible Mr Út took the picture, but the passage of time made it impossible to fully prove, and could find no evidence to prove anyone else did. "We conclude that the level of doubt is too significant to maintain the existing attribution," Joumana El Zein Khoury, the executive director of World Press Photo, said. "At the same time, lacking conclusive evidence pointing definitively to another photographer, we cannot reassign authorship, either." World Press Photo, is an organisation whose photojournalism awards are considered influential in photography. A spokesperson for the group said it won't attempt to recover the cash award given to Mr Út. Mr Út's lawyer, James Hornstein, said his client hadn't spoken to World Press Photo after some initial contact before The Stringer was released. Gary Knight, a producer of The Stringer, is a four-time judge of the World Press Photo awards and a consultant to the World Press Photo Foundation. The AP said on Friday that its standards "require proof and certainty to remove a credit and we have found that it is impossible to prove exactly what happened that day on the road or in the [AP] bureau over 50 years ago". "We understand World Press Photo has taken different action based on the same available information, and that is their prerogative," the statement said. "There is no question over AP's ownership of the photo." Meanwhile, the Pulitzer Prize that Mr Út won for the photo appears safe. The Pulitzer depends on news agencies who enter the awards to determine authorship, and administrator Marjorie Miller — a former AP senior editor — pointed to the AP's study showing insufficient proof to withdraw credit. "The board does not anticipate future action at this time," she said on Friday. AP/AFP
CBC
16-05-2025
- Entertainment
- CBC
World Press Photo suspends credit for historic 'Napalm Girl' photo
World Press Photo announced Friday it will suspend the authorship attribution of The Terror of War, also known as "Napalm Girl," the iconic photograph taken in 1972 during the Vietnam War. An independent investigation was launched by World Press Photo in January after a documentary released by The VII Foundation last year questioned whether Huỳnh Công (Nick) Út, the Associated Press staff photographer credited with the shot, actually took it. "Investigative analysis from World Press Photo indicated that, based on analysis of location, distance, and the camera used on that day, photographers Nguyễn Thành Nghệ or Huỳnh Công Phúc may have been better positioned to take the photograph than Nick Út," World Press Photo stated in a news release. "Due to this current doubt, World Press Photo has suspended the attribution to Nick Út." Út, a young Vietnamese photographer who had been an Associated Press staffer at the time the photo was taken, has long been attributed for capturing the moment children fled from a napalm bomb attack carried out by a South Vietnamese aircraft on its own troops and civilians. The photograph was awarded The World Press Photo of the Year in 1973 and a Pulitzer Prize in that same year. The Stringer, The VII Foundation's 2024 documentary, alleged that the photograph was actually taken by Nguyễn Thành Nghệ, a Vietnamese military photographer who was a stringer at the time, and was misattributed to Út. AP conducted its own nearly year-long investigation, eventually concluding that "there is not the 'definitive evidence' required by AP's standards to change the credit of the 53-year-old photograph." Bao Nguyen, The Stringer 's director, issued a statement via The VII Foundation's website following World Press Photo's suspension of attribution, saying the announcement "signals a turning point." "This film is also about power – who gets to be seen, who is believed, and who gets to write history," Nguyen's statement said. "It affirms the need to look again at the stories we thought we knew." Út's lawyer, James Hornstein, has disputed the film's claims. He told the Associated Press that his client hadn't spoken to World Press Photo after some initial contact before The Stringer was released. "It seems they had already made up their mind to punish Nick Ut from the start," he said. Hornstein did not immediately respond to a request from CBC News. World Press Photo said in its release that "the photograph itself remains undisputed," stressing that the World Press Photo award it received for capturing the historic moment "remains a fact." "This remains contested history, and it is possible that the author of the photograph will never be fully confirmed. The suspension of the authorship attribution stands unless it is proved otherwise."
Yahoo
30-01-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Nick Ut Lawyer Plans Defamation Lawsuit Against ‘The Stringer' Filmmakers Over Napalm-Girl Photo Flap: ‘Just Not Credible'
A lawyer representing Nick Ut, the AP photographer credited with the iconic 'Napalm Girl' image that turned the tide of the Vietnam War, says he is facilitating a defamation lawsuit against the filmmakers of 'The Stringer,' the Sundance documentary claiming that it was a local shooter who actually took the Pulitzer-winning image in 1972. In a statement provided to TheWrap, James Hornstein, who is representing Ut pro-bono, says a third-party lawfirm is prepping the case against VII Foundation, whose documentary sets out to prove that the image was actually captured by Nguyen Thanh Nghe, a freelancer and a driver for NBC during the war. Nghe, who said 'I took the photo' during an audience Q&A after the film was screened in Park City, and former AP Saigon photo editor Carl Robinson are key figures in the documentary. Hornstein says Robinson has harbored a grudge against the AP for more than 50 years over his forced relocation and eventual firing by the news collective, and presented testimony from other eyewitnesses – many of whom have since died – attesting to Ut's photo credit. 'A defamation action will soon be filed against the filmmakers to correct this outrageous decision by VII Foundation to provide Carl Robinson a platform for his 50-year vendetta,' Hornstein wrote in the statement. 'Having waited 52 years to come forward, after the passing of virtually all the eye witnesses who would have disputed his claim, is the claim entitled to be believed? Our response is NO!!' VII Foundation did not have an immediate statement regarding Hornstein's assertions Wednesday night. Hornstein also supplied a lengthy statement from Kim Phuc, the still-living girl in the photo, who says Ut took the photo – and also transported her and her then-5-year-old brother to a hospital that day when no one else would. 'I have been made aware that there is a film … embracing Carl Robinson's mean and untrue claim that Nick Ut is not the man who took the Pulitzer photo known as 'Napalm Girl,'' she writes. 'It is the photo of me, Phan Thi Kim Phuc, a naked nine-year-old girl, running towards the camera … I have refused to participate in this outrageous and false attack on Nick Ut raised by Mr. Robinson over the past years and never responded to his email requesting that I talk with him. I hope he finds peace in his life.' Phuc adds that she was in shock and her memory contains only 'flitting images' of the harrowing moment, but relatives 'have all verified to me they saw Nick, who was the only photojournalist who ran ahead towards me who took the photo. Additionally, my uncle was the person who begged Nick and his AP driver to take me to the nearest hospital … My uncle told me through the years that no one offered to take me and other burn victims since most wanted to head back to Saigon before dusk for fear of Vietcong ambush and gunfire attacks on the road. It was only Nick who agreed to my uncle's pleas.' Hornstein also supplied a letter-to-the-editor written in 1989 by NBC correspondent Arthur Lord and published by the Los Angeles Times three years before his death, calling Ut's credit 'well-deserved.' Lord was being driven on the day of the bombing by Nghe, who now claims credit for the photograph. 'Surely if Arthur Lord's driver had taken the photo, he'd have known it and, as a fierce competitor with AP, he'd have put it forward,' Hornstein wrote. 'Carl Robinson's 50-year vendetta against Nick Ut [and the AP] is just not credible. His animus toward Nick and toward AP is well known and is well documented in his own book and his emails to others, copies of which I have.' The panel following 'The Stringer,' directed by Bao Nguyen, also featured Robinson, who said he's carried the truth about who shot the image ever since its publication. 'I didn't want to die before this story came out,' he said. The AP said Sunday that it was not able to speak with its former employee or Nguyen unrestricted, or review other relevant materials, but was open to doing so. 'We continue to reiterate what we have said all along – and said publicly last week: AP stands ready to review any and all evidence and new information about this photo. To do so, the filmmakers would have to lift the restriction they placed on all their contributors who signed non-disclosure agreements. … We cannot state more clearly that The Associated Press is only interested in the facts and a truthful history of this iconic photo.' The post Nick Ut Lawyer Plans Defamation Lawsuit Against 'The Stringer' Filmmakers Over Napalm-Girl Photo Flap: 'Just Not Credible' appeared first on TheWrap.
