Award-winning photographer stripped of award for... professional ethics

The World Press Photo awards were withdrawn by organizers on Wednesday (March 4) following a controversy over the award's eligibility criteria involving allegations of ethical misconduct by one of the winners.

The Amsterdam-based organization said in a statement that Giovanni Troilo, an Italian national, was stripped of the prize because one of his winning images depicting post-industrial devastation in the Belgian city of Charleroi was actually taken 50 kilometers away.

Controversy over Troilo's journalism began after the mayor of Charleroi complained that The Dark Heart of Europe, Troilo's photo series that won first prize in the Current Affairs - Narrative category last month, presented a distorted view of his city.

One of Troilo's photos was determined to have been taken in a different location than originally reported.

Judges initially defended the series of images, which included an image of Troilo's cousin and a woman having sex in a car, an old woman slumped over a table in a care home and a couple preparing to hold a nude party with a woman sitting in a cage.

However, on Wednesday they said they had gathered evidence that the photos of the nude models were taken in Brussels, the capital of Belgium.

"This story does not comply with the rules of the award and therefore the award must be revoked," the World Press Photo Awards, which have been in existence for the past 60 years, said in a statement on its Facebook page.

The report also quotes Troilo as confirming that the images were not taken in Charleroi.

“The ongoing debate about the definitions of photojournalism and documentary photography is necessary, and it will have an impact on the ethical perceptions of those who work there,” said Lars Boering, the organization’s executive director. “We find ourselves right at the heart of this debate and our aim is to take this as a learning experience.”

According to thethaovanhoa.vn