The art of taking… or not taking pictures

UNICEF is constantly faced with ethical choices. One of these dilemmas is that of communication, and particularly with regard to photographic or video media. Indeed, UNICEF must communicate on its actions, and this in particular within the framework of its appeals for donations. However, the circumstances that UNICEF collaborators film or shoot are often difficult, and the subjects are sometimes in almost tragic situations, even though many of these subjects are minors in extremely vulnerable situations. This raises a crucial question: how to show potential donors the reality experienced by the beneficiaries without being unnecessarily dramatic?

Therefore, UNICEF shares with all its collaborators advice on how to question the clichés to be taken and the clichés to be published, by trying to develop a humanitarian communication that goes beyond traditional stereotypes.

First of all, it is important not to perpetuate stereotypes that are already outdated, in which beneficiaries, and in particular those belonging to racial groups that are often under-considered, are presented as mere objects of humanitarian aid. Instead, we should prefer images in which beneficiaries are presented as actors of their own resilience — a resilience that I can testify to in DRC, and which never ceases to strike me and move me.

The aim is to demonstrate the complexity of the situations experienced by the beneficiaries, without imposing a simplistic reading. One of the most important aspects is to work to avoid the humanitarian relationship between the humanitarian worker and the beneficiary appearing as a power relationship, often racialized. Humanitarianism in the 21st century can no longer be marked by “white saviourism”.

This attention to images is particularly important for images involving well-known public figures, as well as for images dealing with malnutrition, which are often particularly difficult to watch. It is no longer a question of making people cry, but of showing the path of hope that is opening up for the beneficiaries, thanks to humanitarian interventions but also to the beneficiaries themselves and to local societies.