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Extra credit
Just two weeks before Obama began his presidency, photographer Pete Souza was hired. He had previously documented the Reagan presidency during the 1980s and was eager to cover each move Obama made. Black tie dinners, the Bin Laden raid, and visits with wounded soldiers are just a small fraction of the moments Souza captured. Through the camera lens Souza seems to freeze an emotion within a photo that causes the viewer to immerse themselves into history.
Video from YouTube.com
Ethics played a role in his job
Ethically speaking, Souza was trusted by the Obama administration to be in on some of the most crucial moments of Obama's presidency. For instance, Souza was in on the action when Bin Laden's raid was being monitored. He was trusted to be in the room with the most powerful people in the nation, such as Obama, Hillary Clinton, CIA director, Joe Biden and many more. Within these moments he accurately captures expression on their faces and because of that he is showing the truth to the public. He shows the concern, anxiousness and patience government leaders had in crucial moments of American history.
He asked questions after Bin Laden's capture and death such as, "If we make it public, how are we going to make it public?" and "Are we sure it's Bin Laden?"
This demonstrates Souza's need to inform he public of the truth in the right way and at the right time.
Humanity and ethics
Souza understood that humanity matters. After the Sandy Hook Elementary shooting there was a gathering for parents who had lost their children to meet with Obama. Souza's duty was to capture the interactions Obama had with the families and school officials affected by the shooting. During Souza's presentation on Tuesday, he showed the audience a photo of a mother, father, and brother of a boy that was shot and killed. The mother was clearly crying on Obama's shoulder while her other child and husband held onto her.
During this moment in his presentation he shared with us that he could tell by the expression on people's faces if he was crossing a boundary or getting too close and personal. If he felt that he was he would back off and create distance between his camera and the family. Also, Souza reached out to the families he photographed who had lost their children. He asked for their permission to share photos of their family grieving with Obama. Asking for permission from a family demonstrates that Souza didn't want to cause more harm or prolonged their trauma of loosing a child.
Capturing truth
Souza explained his job in simple ways. He explained his job as just simply following Obama around each day. Through his photo collection he showed the audience that he captured Obama's work mode and play mode. This shows us that he was being transparent with his photos and wasn't hiding negative moments during Obama's presidency.
In other words, Souza captured the good and the bad. He captured moments that depict Obama as the family man people said he was. He showed this through photos with his daughters. One in particular was a photo of them playing in the snow in front of the White House.
Lastly, Souza showed the audience a photo from the moment Obama was leaving office and handing his power to the opposite party he represents. This is when he discovered that President Trump would now hold office. The photo shows Obama speaking to a large group of White House officials and it was during a time when Obama had to act as a comforter to upset staff about the election. The photo depicts a 'bad day' in the office, but also the power of people when they come together.
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