BJP #7861: Struth or Fiction?

Fake news and ethical quandaries are hot topics right now – so BJP has responded with its take on the topic, and an issue focussing on documentary storytelling and differing imperatives on objectivity.

Max Pinckers provides a sophisticated reading of the often complex subjects he tackles, committed to exploring nuance and mindful that truth rarely lies on the surface. “Fiction often teaches us more about reality than reality itself,” he tells Tom Seymour in an interview about his collaboration with Quinten de Bruyn, addressing transgender people in Thailand.
“[Yet] without objectivity there would be no tension between what we see and believe… It’s necessary in order to make the viewer believe in what they are seeing, and question this very reality depicted in photographs.”
Photojournalist Daniel Berehulak has twice been recognised with a Pulitzer award, most recently for his New York Times story recording the bloody aftermath of state-sponsored assassinations in the Philippines. He admits to Stephen McLaren that he’s held doubts about the motives of his profession, but argues that it’s now more important than ever to hold authority to account.
“I realised we were making a counter-historical record to the [Philippines] police of these killings and that is why we were there,” he says.

Contrast this work with the No Man’s Land in Munem Wasif’s latest series, which ponders one of the world’s most contested borderlands, or the singular image-making practice of Thomas Struth – who argues that: “As soon as a human being is involved there is no objectivity.”
“These approaches are often presented as being in conflict, yet none can claim veracity over another if they are honest about their intent,” writes BJP editor Simon Bainbridge. “None tells the full picture, and we should remain wary of their motives, as we are about our media and politicians in the so-called era of post-truth.”
Add to that BJP’s monthly mix of news and views, including an interview with Arianna Rinaldo, creative director of the Cortona On The Move festival, projects by Viktoria Sorochinski, Julien Chatelin, Antoine Bruy and Loulou d’Aki, and the Creative Brief from Suzy Hopper, head of UNHCR‘s photo unit.

Our latest issue, Struth or Fiction, is available to buy now from The BJP Shop. Find it in the App Store from 6 June and in shops from 7 June.





Buy the latest issue now from The BJP Shop