Standing strong for visual journalists; The NPPA’s ongoing advocacy for access and innovation

Carey Wagner, president, National Press Photographers Association. (Photo credit: Steve Remich)

We really do need to continue to build community and look for opportunities — whatever those look like — and fight for our ethics and our First Amendment rights.”

Carey Wagner

The National Press Photographers Association (NPPA) has advocated for visual journalists since 1949. It represents nearly 4,000 members.

Since its inception, the NPPA has worked with photographers across traditional film-based and digital photography and video on topics such as freelancing and understanding First Amendment laws.

Advocacy is the centerpiece for the NPPA, particularly as visual journalists have been increasingly challenged by lack of access to events like press conferences or have been threatened with arrest and prosecution for covering demonstrations. This summer, the organization offered free legal training sessions for journalists covering political conventions, a popular NPPA program in recent years.

Carey Wagner, NPPA president, told E&P they have continual discussions about how the organization should educate its membership as media distrust impacts the industry. Wagner, who previously served in various roles at NPPA, including as regional chair, a mentor and a mentee, wanted to give back to the organization that played a role in developing her career.

“I want to be part of having us go forward, giving more access to different people,” Carey said. “Maybe you came from a different area, but you are a storyteller and want to know about ethics. We’re here as a strong, established, ethical organization to help you.”

From tax workshops for freelancers to storytelling summits and sessions on newsgathering best practices and tips for safety, NPPA runs events virtually and in person nationwide, ensuring its members have convenient access to continuing education opportunities.

In 2016, John Kavanagh, an Arizona state senator who was a former New York City police officer, tried to introduce legislation that would bar video recording within 20 feet of law enforcement activity. While the legislation never passed, and advocates have rallied against the bill’s passing, the fight to limit access to visual journalists continues in many states and internationally.

In March, the NPPA, in coalition with other groups, offered a response to proposals set forth by the New York City Mayor’s Office of Media and Entertainment for press credentials, which included having the discretion to suspend a credential. Previously, press credentials were handled by the New York City Police Department.

Mickey Osterreicher, general counsel, National Press Photographers Association

Mickey Osterreicher, NPPA’s general counsel, has been at the forefront of helping journalists and police officers understand their rights within the First Amendment. Osterreicher previously told E&P that access and arrest are two ways the press is being contested. Technologies like artificial intelligence and drones are also influencing how journalists work. 

“Both their constitutional rights and copyright issues are huge because photographers risk their health and safety to go out and make these amazing images,” said Osterreicher. Before becoming a lawyer, he started his journalism career at the University of Buffalo and went on to work as a visual journalist in both print and television. “But if they can’t earn a living from those images because they don’t understand copyright and licensing of those images, it’s not going to be long before they look for something else to do.”

AI is at the top of Osterreicher’s mind, as the AI tech platforms use visual journalists’ images to train their solutions, often without permission or compensation.

“We’ve seen a number of organizations who have filed suit against those companies for not just ingesting their photographs but ingesting stories that have been written. … I think that will be a real challenge for visual jobs and the entire world,” he said.

Seth Gitner, an associate professor at S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications, runs training workshops for NPPA. (Submitted photo)

Seth Gitner, associate professor at S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications, recalled NPPA’s first workshop in 2007, which introduced members to video production.

“The NPPA really embraced new technology. Still photographers embraced this new way of telling stories,” Gitner said. “Some of them went from being amazing still photographers to becoming amazing filmmakers.”

Attendees of their workshops reflect how their membership and visual production as a profession are evolving.

“Our audience changed for workshops,” Gitner explained. “We started getting a lot of public relations people and many people who wanted to learn how to do filmmaking.”

Wagner, who will serve as president for a year, spoke about how the NPPA needs to be nimble and smartly evolve as technology, professional opportunities and environmental challenges — such as legal concerns and safety — change.

“We really do need to continue to build community and look for opportunities — whatever those look like — and fight for our ethics and our First Amendment rights,” Wagner said.

"We must ensure we have a very established, strong voice in visual journalism that people can come to,” NPPA’s president concluded.

Keldy Ortiz is a New York-based writer and educator. He has written for publications locally and nationally. (Photo credit: Michael Jackson)