On Monday, March 31, the Los Angeles Times published a front-page photograph
that had been altered in violation of Times policy. The primary subject
of the photo was a British soldier directing Iraqi civilians to take cover
from Iraqi fire on the outskirts of Basra. After publication, it was noticed
that several civilians in the background appear twice. The photographer,
Brian Walski, reached by telephone in southern Iraq, acknowledged that he
had used his computer to combine elements of two photographs, taken moments
apart, in order to improve the composition. Times policy forbids altering
the content of news photographs. Because of the violation, Walski, a Times
photographer since 1998, has been dismissed from the staff. The altered
photo, along with the two photos that were used to produce it, are below:
