1st Edition

Critical Photojournalism Contemporary Ethics and Practices

By Tara Pixley, Judy Walgren Copyright 2026
    240 Pages 82 Color & 1 B/W Illustrations
    by Routledge

    240 Pages 82 Color & 1 B/W Illustrations
    by Routledge

    An essential introduction to the complexities of visual representation, this book offers a critical new framework for understanding and practicing photojournalism in a global digital context.

    Critical Photojournalism guides readers through a variety of ethical, technical, and business skills, plus the mental health, self-care, and safety considerations necessary to thrive in the field. Drawing on their extensive industry and teaching experience, the authors provide real-world advice on how to navigate the demands of the profession whilst addressing the impact that photojournalism has on society and ways that photojournalists can mitigate harm. Consideration is given to understanding and disrupting implicit bias and power structures in newsrooms, as well as issues around access, working in breaking news environments, and balancing informed consent with varying media laws around the world. In accessible language, this book highlights the importance of collaboration and community engagement in contemporary photojournalism and encourages students to adopt a decolonial approach to their work. Readers will learn to balance the needs for accuracy and thoughtfulness with the priorities of a global, social media engaged audience.

    This is a key textbook for those seeking a nuanced introduction to visual journalism and/or a fresh approach to their craft.

    This book is supported by a website which can be accessed at criticalphotojournalism.com. The website includes a full-length bonus chapter on Video & Photojournalism, interviews with professional visual journalists, further tips and tools, and a glossary of key terms.

    Forward

    Acknowledgements

    Introduction

    Chapter 1 Photojournalism Ethics & Legal Issues

    Chapter 2 Safety and Trauma-Informed Visual Journalism

    Chapter 3 Breaking and General News

    Chapter 4 Portraiture

    Chapter 5 Sports Photography

    Chapter 6 Documenting Events

    Chapter 7 Long-form Visual Storytelling

    Chapter 8 Photo Editing and Captions

    Chapter 9 Innovation and Photojournalism

    Chapter 10 Business Essentials

    Conclusion

    Index

    Biography

    Tara Pixley, PhD, is a photojournalist, assistant professor at Temple University, USA and Executive Director of Authority Collective. She has been a photo editor for the New York TimesNewsweek, CNN and The 19th. She is a Reynolds Journalism Innovation Fellow, IWMF NextGen Fellow, Pulitzer Center grantee, World Press Photo Solutions Visual Journalism grantee, and Knight Fellow at Harvard’s Nieman Foundation. Tara serves as Vice President of the NPPA Board and was a co-author of the Photo Bill of Rights.

    Judy Walgren is a Pulitzer-Prize winning journalist and chair of the Foothill College Photography Department in Los Altos Hills, California, USA. Walgren worked for decades as a staff photojournalist, photo editor and director of photography at news organizations in Dallas, Denver and San Francisco. Before joining Foothill College, she served as the associate director for the Michigan State University School of Journalism.