Visual Journalism and Verification at War

Considering the visual coverage of the war in Ukraine, this book provides critical insights into how newsrooms make use of visual materials, how visuals partake in journalistic storytelling in a modern wartime context, and how visual journalism practices affect the news media's role as arbiter of accuracy and ethics.

Maria Nilsson is Professor of Journalism in the Department of Media Studies at Stockholm University, Sweden. Her research interests include visual storytelling, newsroom routines, the ethics of witnessing, visual representations of crises, and the history of photography. Her current research focuses on visual verification practices and disinformation and the truth claims of journalism in crisis coverage. Anne Hege Simonsen is Associate Professor and Head of Department of Journalism and Media Studies at Oslo Metropolitan University, Norway. Her research interests include visual journalism, global and international reporting, climate crisis and environment coverage, media and minorities, physical walls and boundaries, and non-fiction writing. She has written, edited, and contributed to several text books in journalism for the Norwegian market.

List of figues List of tables Acknowledgements 1. Disrupting the boundaries of photojournalism at war A background to the full-scale invasion Previous research on the war in Ukraine Photojournalism at war, witnessing and visual meaning-making Visual verification, trust and truth Our empirical study Empirical focus Methods Chapter outline Funding and approvals A note on our collaboration 2. Bridges and flows Witnessing, networks and flows Witnessing outbreak: Time, space and production in the field Summary: random and deliberate coverage Witnessing atrocities: the cases of Bucha and Borodyanka Witnessing through tropes and conventions: Commemorating the invasion Chapter summary: Witnessing through bridges and flows 3. The war next door: The perspectives of editors and photojournalists Being there The gap between seeing and showing Safety, bias and trust Chapter summary: About the coverage of the war next door 4. Truth, trust (and everything in between) A hierarchy of trust Skilling up (digital forensics) Chapter summary: Fact-checking as a new genre 5. Reflections on the Norwegian and Swedish visual coverage of the war in Ukraine References Index