A photo editor at one of the major news outlets – who is not named in the report – believes that it is “dangerous” for the media to promote former President Trump’s victorious pose after escaping an assassination attempt weekend as giving him some “free PR.”
An Axios media trends analysis on Tuesday contended that the “overuse” of the widely circulated Trump photo can “pose risks” and serve as a form of propaganda in itself.
The image depicts Trump seconds after the bullet barely missed his right ear as he was dragged to ground during a rally on Saturday in an exclusive image. Blood was smeared across his face and two Secret Service agents were flanking him as he raised a fist to the crowd of supporters that had packed in front – an American flag fluttered just above his head.
“The amount that publications have been using Evan’s photo is kind of free PR for Trump in a way, and it’s dangerous for media organizations to keep sharing that photo despite how good it is,” the editor told the outlet.
The picture has been hailed as a momentous image and an instant classic. It will even be featured on the next print cover of TIME Magazine. Many have said it would forever alter some peoples’ views of Trump, one of the most admired and reviled political figures in American history.
The Washington Post’s art critic, Phillip Kennicott, said it was “a photograph that could change America forever.”
Jonathan Alter, a psychotherapist in New York who specializes in masculinity and gender issues says it “encapsulates the essence” of what Americans feel they expect from their leaders.
“The image and the preceding event perfectly capture the raw vulnerability of a powerful former leader at his most vulnerable moment likely ever in his life, only to be followed by that of perseverance, strength, and defiance in the face of evil,” Alter told Fox News Digital.
“This image very well encapsulates the essence of what most Americans have come to admire in our heroes –both in fiction and in real life — and in those we look towards to lead: emerging from chaos with resilience and authority, and unwavering toughness,” he continued. “Frankly, one that might change the narrative on ‘toxic masculinity.’”
A Pulitzer Prize-winning AP photographer who has photographed thousands of similar events since 2003, Vucci told Fox News Digital he knew in the moment that he was witnessing history as shots rang toward a former president.
Trump laughed when he brought up the now-infamous photo during an interview with The New York Post on Monday, saying “A lot of people say it’s the most iconic photo they’ve ever seen. They’re right and I didn’t die. Usually you have to die to have an iconic picture.”
