By Kenny Barto
On February 16th, the journalism profession lost one of its best reporters. Anthony Shadid, a Pulitzer Prize winning writer and international correspondent for the New York Times, died from an apparent asthma attack while in Syria.
Shadid’s death is only half of the story, however. The other half is a heroic story, and in my opinion, shows why people subscribe to the New York Times, as well as showing just how important the relationship is between reporter and photographer.
Traveling with Shadid was fellow New York Times employee, photographer Tyler Hicks. Just like Shadid, Hicks was also a Pulitzer Prize winner, in addition to many more photography awards. They both knew each other for several years, and were even held captive together during the Libyan revolution last year.
The two were on assignment in Syria without permission, gathering information on the Syrian resistance. They were on horseback, which is apparently what triggered Shadid’s asthma attack. Because they did not have permission to be in the country, Hicks had to carry Shadid’s body with him out of Syria and into Turkey. It’s unclear of exactly what happened, but one thing is clear; Tyler Hicks is the reason that Shadid’s family has a body to bury.
It’s hard to explain, but this story seemed to ring a particular bell for me. I’ve done photography for about five years now and although I’ve never really gotten into a hairy situation, there’s no doubt in my mind that I would never hesitate to carry one of their bodies on my back.
Most people don’t realize and don’t actually see how much a writer and photographer collaborate, but that type of close relationship is why The Recorder is able to print week in and week out. Although most sports images are the discretion of the photographer, news and feature stories are a lot different. I have to work closely with the writers to understand what the best image is going to be, and use their knowledge to see how I can utilize my photography to tell their story.
These types of relationships also develop lasting friendships. I can only imagine how close of friends Shadid and Hicks were, and how Hicks handled the passing of his friend and colleague. In the end, the newspaper as a whole and the individuals involved with it mean a lot to me. I’ve worked here for two years, and I’m extremely grateful to have this job and the ability to work with some extremely talented people.
In the case of Shadid and Hicks, there’s no doubt that they learned from each other, and the things they shared with each other is what made them such good friends. I mean, how could two Pulitzer Prize winners in their respective fields not be able to feed off one another to make themselves better? The most important thing as journalists is networking, and picking up different things from different people, no matter how big or small.
For me, the lasting friendships are definitely things that I won’t forget. But, the thing that I cherish most is the things that I learn from these people, and the ability to teach them the things that I know.
