Friday, March 29, 2024
Picture of murdered woman's body with Hamas terrorists wins 'prestigious' award, angering Jewish community
A university sparked anger in the Jewish community and on social media by bestowing an award for a photo of the body of German-Israeli dual citizen Shani Louk, who was killed by Hamas terrorists.
Louk was the subject of a photo that helped the Associated Press take home "Team Picture Story of the Year."
The award, which is a program of the Donald W. Reynolds Journalism Institute at the Missouri School of Journalism, gave its first place spot to a series of photos by AP photographers. The picture of Louk is featured on the institute's website.
The photo of Louk's body being displayed was taken by freelancer Ali Mahmud and captioned in part: "Heavy Israeli airstrikes on the enclave has killed thousands of Palestinians. Palestinian militants drive back to the Gaza Strip with the body of Shani Louk, a German-Israeli dual citizen, during their cross-border attack on Israel, Saturday, Oct. 7, 2023."
"This premiere category recognizes the collaborative effort of a photography staff covering a single topic or news story," the site about the award states. "It is a narrative picture story that consists of images taken as part of a team effort to cover a single issue or news story."
Some social media influencers criticized the release of the photos, especially of Louk, online.
"Photos showing violence and death can be newsworthy or important when they humanize the dead or galvanize the public," senior fellow at the Tel Aviv Institute, Hen Mazzig, wrote in a post on X Thursday. "The 'winning' photo does neither; it only further dehumanizes Shani, retraumatizes her family, and legitimizes Hamas's actions under the guise of journalistic neutrality."
"There is a dead body of a partially unclothed human being, a young woman who was brutally murdered and probably raped. This cannot be real. Please remove this photo," one user wrote, according to the Jerusalem Post. Another wrote, "She has a name. Shani Louk. Her family specifically requested that we remember her laughing and living. Take this down and show some respect. If you want to post our Shani, find a photo she consented to."
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