At 24, Palestinian Photographer Is Youngest Winner of Journalism Award
VOA News｜ARTS & CULTURE
October 04, 2021 2:42 PM (source)
At 24, Palestinian Photographer Is Youngest Winner of Journalism Award
24 歲的巴勒斯坦攝影師成為最年輕的新聞獎得主
October 04, 2021 2:42 PM
Esha Sarai
VOA News 搶先看
巴勒斯坦攝影記者 Fatima Shbair 贏得了 2021 年由國際婦女媒體基金會 (IWMF) 所頒發的 Anja Niedringhaus 新聞攝影勇氣獎，24 歲的她是該獎項史上最年輕的獲獎人，此獎是以 2014 年在阿富汗遇害的德國美聯社攝影師為名。住在加薩城的 Shbair 即使在空襲期間依然盡忠職守，用相機記錄城內日常生活，「以巴衝突的 11 天」就是她以 2021 年 5 月的以巴衝突為主題，製作的淒美專題攝影作品。
A woman walks alone past bombed-out windowless buildings in Gaza, black high heels on gray rubble. This image of life during conflict was one of several captured by a young Palestinian photojournalist in May.
The striking set of images has earned Fatima Shbair the 2021 Anja Niedringhaus Courage in Photojournalism Award, bestowed by the International Women's Media Foundation (IWMF).
At 24, Shbair is the youngest journalist to be awarded the honor, which was named for a German Associated Press photographer who was killed in 2014 while on assignment in Afghanistan.
Shbair's photos center on the Palestinian-Israeli conflict in May 2021. More than 200 people, including dozens of children, died during the 11 days of fighting. The United Nations said at the time that the Israeli airstrikes might constitute a war crime, and it also condemned tactics used by Hamas.
Shbair, who lives in Gaza City, said that when the airstrikes began, she picked up her camera and continued doing her job: documenting daily life.
"As photojournalists, it's our job to focus on the little details that might not be apparent for anyone outside the city," she told VOA.
Shbair documented everything she saw, including scenes of mourning and commutes across the city, in her poignant photo essay "11 Days of the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict."
"Everything happening there deserved to be documented. It doesn't matter how dangerous it is," she told VOA.
Judges praise work
The body of work, shot under tough conditions, caught the attention of the IWMF judges.
Members of the judging committee "were really impressed with how she captured these incredibly beautiful images among the wreckage of an ongoing bombardment that she was also living through herself," Elisa Lees Muñoz, executive director of the IWMF, told VOA.
"The fact that she was part of this conflict and really trying to survive as a civilian, in addition to trying to survive as a photojournalist, was pretty telling," Muñoz said.
Shbair studied journalism in college but taught herself photography while documenting what she calls "different" daily life in Gaza in 2019. By 2020, she was working as a freelancer and selling images to international agencies such as Getty Images.
But the conflict this may presented new challenges.
"I left my home and my family for 11 days. I went directly into the field, moving from one office to another," she said. "I just stayed there in the streets, running toward what was happening. It was not easy, but in some way, I did it."
Inspiring images
The IWMF's annual award recognizes photography that inspires viewers or helps them better understand the world. Each awardee is given ,000 and has her work showcased.
Honorable mentions this year were given to Kiana Hayeri, an Iranian Canadian photojournalist based in Afghanistan since 2013, and Adriana Zehbrauskas, a Brazilian documentary photojournalist who covers immigration and the drug trade across borders with Mexico.
On Thursday, one day after she was named an awardee, Hayeri posted a humble thank you on Instagram, alongside a photo of an older Afghan woman taken in April.
"As I'm posting this, I'm sitting at my gate, waiting to catch one last plane to go back to Kabul with a chest filled with contrasting feelings," Hayeri wrote.
The award's namesake, Niedringhaus, also extensively covered events in Afghanistan. She was the recipient of a separate IWMF Courage in Journalism Award in 2005, the same year her team won a Pulitzer Prize for coverage of the war in Iraq.
"(Niedringhaus) is among us with her images," 2021 awardee Shbair said. "Despite all difficulties, I hope that we will be efficient in continuing her journey to always highlight the truth."
Language Notes
註 1： bestowed 為動詞，意指贈予；給予
註 2： mourning 為名詞，意指哀痛；哀悼
註 3： poignant 為形容詞，意指令人痛苦的，酸楚的；深深打動人的
註 4： bombardment 為名詞，意指炮擊；轟炸，轟擊
註 5： awardee 為名詞，意指得獎人，受獎者
註 6： recipient 為名詞，意指接受者；領受者；承受者
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Check your comprehension!
Choose the BEST answer to each of the questions below. After you finish, highlight the parentheses to reveal the hidden answers.
1. ( D ) What is the article mainly about?
(A) The peace talks hosted by the UN to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict
(B) The memorial service held for the fallen photography journalists in the Middle East
(C) The condemnation of Israeli's war crime by the United Nation Security Council
(D) The achievement of a young Palestinian photo journalist based in war torn Gaza
2. ( B ) Which of the following statement about Fatima Shbair is TRUE?
(A) She studied photography as a major in college.
(B) She risked her life to capture images of Palestinian life.
(C) She is an Iranian journalist based in Gaza.
(D) She is the sole awardee of the IWMF award.
3. ( C ) The pronoun "it" in the paragraph 8 refers to . . . .?
(A) Speaking up against authorities
(B) Studying in Gaza city
(C) Photographing during bombardment
(D) Communicating with foreign press
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