Identity Theft

Not mine, at least not this time.

No, this time it is the theft of identity and credit of a number of photojournalists, which is brought to light by this special story from The Digital Journalist, found at this link. According to the article, an obscure, self-proclaimed "White House" photographer named Joe O'Donnell who died recently has been eulogized for taking some of the most famous images of the 20th century. Unfortunately, he's been taking credit where none was due.

One of the photographs involved is a tightly cropped image of John Kennedy, Jr. saluting the casket carrying the body of his father. It was an image which tugged at the heart of a nation back in 1963 and I have a vague recollection of it even inspiring a poem. The particular photograph, reproduced above, was actually made by UPI photographer Stanley Stearns, a fact easily proved by overlaying the so-called O'Donnell photo with the original.

This is the downside of the digital era: images can be copied easily and there are no copyright police. Often this kind of fraud comes to light only by accident. In this case, someone's house of cards comes tumbling down after his death, leaving family and friends to sort out the truth from the lies.

Remember to register your images and keep good records. Your heirs may need to take action someday when you are no longer around.