Normally I'm not a fan of the New York Times -- I mean it's legitimate newspaper and definitely high-up in awareness -- but sometimes the newspaper as a whole feels a bit prentious. And -- I HATE the way the staff formats the headlines -- I dislike the font of the headlines and the fact that each word is uppercase. BUT -- it serves the function of a news leader, etc -- so I decided to be positive about the editing of the paper.
In the NYT, this picture was featured on the front page in an article about an immigrant detainee that died. This picture completely enhanced the power of the article because it shows the letter that was written by a fellow detainee basically begging for medical attention. The addition of this picture is one of the only reasons that I gave the article over 5 seconds of my time. It then encouraged me to read on then read through the letter as well. The New York Time usually captures and prints decent pictures, but the inclusion of this letter transformed the front page from being decent to great.
The one criticism I have about the photograph is that the contrast isn't very great, thus it took me longer to read than I feel necessary. Although the editors/designers might not have had much control over this contrast issue - I feel like maybe it could've still be altered. Contrast in photography really does have the power to alter the entire picture -- whether positive or negative -- and evoke mood and different feelings from the audience. In my opinion, this picture would have been more defined and powerful had the contrast been a little bit greater.
Overall -- the New York Times had a great front page with the inclusion of this picture.
I agree. This picture gives readers a much more personal experience. It is pretty cool that the NYT was able to get a hold of this. Did the article mention how they got this letter? It seems like this would be something that would be hidden from the public eye or something....
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