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SEEING THE WORLD
A woman peers between military
policemen at a parade during the
annual Naadam festival in
Ulaanbaatar, the capital of
Mongolia. Stretch Ledford ’86
Euphrates River in Iraq, has been defined
by journalists as having a bloody and tension-filled relationship with U.S. forces.
In 2003, Andrea Bruce was on assignment in Iraq for The Washington Post and
had the opportunity to turn the tables on
that common portrayal.
While riding through the area with her
driver, Bruce spotted a group of children
cooling off in the river and decided that it
was time to tell a story.
“This photo was taken a little bit
before Fallujah became notorious for violence, before contractors were killed and
strung up on the bridge,” she said. “But
there is a daily life in Iraq. Kids are kids,
and this is something they do every day.”
Bruce’s six visits to Iraq have been a
month and a half to three months in
length. In January, she will return for an
entire year.
“It’s harder and harder for us to cover
hard news there, so I’ll cover features and
show a side of Iraq that most people don’t
get to see. We have to cover the hard
news, and it’s extremely important to
show even the complete heartache and
truth of the violence that is happening
there, but I think we also have to have a
community journalism perspective.
“Only when we can really relate to
people in Iraq will readers in the United
States actually care for the violence that
they have to deal with on a day-to-day
basis.”
STEPHANIE NEWTON is a senior, majoring
in journalism and mass communication. She
has been an editorial intern at the Review
since January 2007.
For more about the Ackland’s exhibit, visit
www.ackland.org. The exhibit runs through
April 6. On Jan. 27, Beckman plans to present a multimedia piece on documentary storytelling in the Ackland.
Also, the GAA’s Carolina College for
Lifelong Learning plans an interactive examination of the exhibit at 2:30 p.m. March 12.
For details, go to alumni.unc.edu/ccll.
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