Picturing defiance

Framing visual messages

Framing in communication involves selecting and emphasizing certain aspects of a topic while downplaying others. Entman’s definition of framing suggests the selection is done purposefully to support a desired outcome. ‘To frame is to select some aspects of a perceived reality and make them more salient in a communicating text, in such a way as to promote a particular problem definition, causal interpretation, moral evaluation, and /or treatment recommendation for the item described’ (Entman, 1993: 52). Communicators perceive an event or issue in a particular way and then convey that perspective by making specific aspects prominent in the messages they create. Scholars suggest everyone frames when they communicate (Goffman, 1974), including those in the news media who frame messages as a routine aspect of their work (Frieland and Mangbai, 1996; Gitlin, 1980; Lyombe, 1999; McQuail, 2010; Pan and Kosicki, 1993; Reese, 2001; Schudson, 2003).

How an event or issue is framed through news reports influences the perceptions audience members build of an issue (Schudson, 2003). Framing is effective because readers accept news stories as ‘transparent descriptions of reality’ (Gamson et al., 1992: 382). Readers generally do not critically consider the news messages as social constructions that are influenced by industry routines, economic considerations or political factors, such as the status of one nation’s relations with another.

Much of the framing research has focused on written or spoken texts, the words used to communicate a story. Scholarship of framing through visual messages, including photographs, has lagged in comparison (Coleman, 2010). Unique characteristics of photographs, however, support their efficacy for framing messages in a less obtrusive manner than through written texts (Messaris and Abraham, 2001). Photographs reflect what the camera sees, and the items viewed in a photograph are recognizable to viewers as existing in reality, giving them ‘an implicit guarantee of being closer to the truth than other forms of communication are’ (Messaris and Abraham, 2001: 217). This perception of photographs as truthful means viewers accept the images as direct representations of reality rather than evaluating them as human-made creations (Adatto, 1993: 246; Perlmutter, 1998: 3; Sontag, 1977: 6), making photographs ideal vehicles for framing messages.

While the perceived veracity of photographs supports their effectiveness as framing vehicles, evidence indicates viewers also encounter and process photographs in ways that privilege their impact over other modes of communication. Viewers experience greater familiarity with the content conveyed through photographs than through text alone (Gefter, 2006) and may focus attention on photographs without even reading an accompanying story (Miller, 1975). If a photograph and a story convey different messages, viewers are likely to give greater accord to the photograph (Coleman, 2010). Evidence from brain imaging studies suggests people have stronger and longer-lasting reactions to photographs than to text (Shapiro, 2004), a perception recognized by former US Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld. ‘It is the photographs that gives one the vivid realization of what took place. Words don’t do it’ (Rumsfeld, quoted in Shapiro, 2004).

Photographs may reflect the scene in front of a camera, providing viewers with the perception they are truthful representations of reality, but conscious choices made by photographers regarding content and composition determine how the scene is portrayed, framing the message communicated through the image. A message can be framed through technical aspects of a photograph, such as the use of camera angles and perceived distance from the camera to imply a relationship and suggest the viewer adopt a certain perspective toward the subject (Jewitt and Oyama, 2001). Changes in camera angles and distance to the subject suggested different visual framing of women in Afghanistan before and after the fall of the Taliban regime (Fahmy, 2004).

Photographers also frame messages through choices of items to include or exclude in the image and through the theme or emotion expressed in the content. A photograph of a smiling subject will frame a message in a different manner than a photograph of a crying one. The inclusion of others in the image, the apparent relationship between the subjects and the type of activity represented also can visually frame a message for a viewer.

Scholars have observed repetitive sets of frames prevalent in news images. The frames work as a sort of visual shorthand for photographers, allowing them to quickly communicate storylines to the viewer. The limited range of frames has been observed in photographs of sports (Chang, 2001; Cheng, 1996; Hagaman, 1993) and major news events (Fahmy et al., 2007; Kim, 2003) as well as in feature photographs of everyday life (Greenwood and Smith, 2009). Reliance on a set of predetermined frames may be an efficient tool for photographers, but there is a potential effect upon the viewers. McQuail (2010) argues that a purpose of mass media is to express diverse perspectives, but a narrow set of frames emphasizing the same repetitive themes will lead the audience members viewing the images to a common interpretation of the event depicted (Fahmy and Kim, 2008) and would limit the development of alternative points of view. The potential of photographs to frame messages in a specific way extends to news of international events.

Media and international news

Individuals rely on media for news of international events, but not all international events receive equal media attention (Chang, 1998). Items considered worthy of attention as news generally are the ones that are outside of the ordinary routine, meaning the regular events of daily life around the world go largely unreported (Schudson, 2003). International news also is communicated more often in terms of episodic events rather than through explanations of issues (Horvit, 2003), with reports emphasizing conflict or disaster involving people or situations that would be familiar to an audience (Graber, 2001). Distance to an event can be a limitation to coverage, unless the event involves a high degree of violence (Hess, 1996), but the best overall predictors of international news coverage are the unusualness of the event, particularly with respect to conflict or disaster, and occurrence in industrialized nations where the issue or event affects economic or strategic interests of the media organization’s home country (Chang et al., 1987; Galtung and Ruge, 1965; McQuail, 2010; Riffe et al., 1994; Rosenblum, 1979; Shoemaker et al., 1991).

Visual messages are important to communicating international events (Perlmutter, 1998: 2). Studies of the photographic coverage of international events consistently reflect the emphasis on episodic events, especially conflicts, found in international news coverage in general. Developing nations in particular have been visually framed in prestige newspapers as locations of crisis and conflict (Langton, 1991). More recent studies specifically focused on the visual coverage of conflicts, or specific episodes within a larger conflict, indicate the photographs frame events in a manner supportive of their own country’s stance on the conflict (Fahmy, 2007; Fahmy and Kim, 2008; Schwalbe, 2006).

While conflicts are prominent in visual coverage, activity after the conflict is over often goes unnoticed. Photographs of the US military involvement in Vietnam are prevalent. Photographs of reconstruction following the unification of North and South Vietnam are largely absent (Greenwood and Smith, 2007). Critics of international news coverage may argue for a shift in focus to cultural changes occurring in developing nations, but those topics are more difficult to portray visually than are specific events (Larson, 1984).

The dominance of event-oriented, conflict-driven photographs in international news is reinforced by its prevalence among photographs representing the best of photojournalism. More than two-thirds of the Pulitzer Prizes awarded over 60 years for photographs of international events depicted scenes of war or conflict, compared to 12% that depicted social problems (Kim and Smith, 2005). War and conflict also were dominant among photographs of international events that won awards in the Pictures of the Year International (POYi) competition over a comparable span of years, though the disparity between the number of photographs of conflict and those depicting social problems was smaller among the POYi photographs than among the Pulitzer winners (Greenwood and Smith, 2007). Both studies, however, reflect an American perspective in the photographs. A prerequisite for Pulitzer consideration is that the photographs must have been published in American newspapers, increasing the likelihood that the photographs would depict conflicts with American involvement or from areas of economic or strategic interest to the United States. To provide validity for the comparison, Greenwood and Smith also selected photographs that displayed apparent American involvement.

An examination of photographs of the 2009 Iranian presidential election from POYi provides an opportunity to extend the analysis. The election was a specific event, but one not initially dominated by conflict. While the election was important to American interests, there was no apparent evidence of direct American involvement. Photographers representing multiple nationalities covered the events surrounding the election, with some representing organizations that disseminate photographs in multiple countries. Given these contrasts, would the photographs reflecting photojournalists’ best work also reflect the conflict related to the civil unrest following the announcement of the election results, or would the election be depicted through another frame?

Pictures of the year

Visual framing studies have examined both published photographs and photographs that have been entered or selected for awards in competitions, including the Pulitzers and POYi. Published photographs provide a view of the frames presented to viewers at the end of the editorial process, where organizational factors govern selection and presentation is based on considerations such as the photograph’s relevance to an accompanying story or available space for its display (McQuail, 2010; Rosenblum, 1978). Photographs from competitions represent a different perspective. The images entered are those perceived to be photojournalists’ best work, ² offering an opportunity to examine how photojournalists framed an event or issue in practice rather than the images selected for their ability to fulfill an editorial role.

There is motivation for a photographer to enter his or her best work in a competition. Winning a photography contest can be a valuable stepping-stone in a photographer’s career (Stallman, 1990). Winning a Pulitzer Prize for photography brings not only notoriety but also a $10,000 award (Pulitzer Prizes, 2011). Winning the POYi competition can help a photographer get a raise or even a better job (Cookman, 2009: 213; Hagaman, 1993). Art Whitman, the fifth president of the National Press Photographers Association, believed the motivation for recognition through photography contests would have an impact in a photographer’s daily work. ‘A photographer who covers his assignments with the thought in mind of winning prizes and honors in photo contests will inevitably be a better photographer, simply because he is trying to make better pictures’ (Cookman, 2009: 211). Among photography competitions, POYi awards have been considered the most coveted (Cookman, 2009: 212). They have been referred to as the ‘Oscars of photojournalism’ (Garrett, 1999: 51).

The POYi competition began in 1944 and presents itself as ‘the oldest and most prestigious photojournalism program and competition in the world’ (POYi, 2009). Begun as the selection of the 50 best news photographs from 1943, POYi has become a multi-category competition featuring the work of photographers working in multiple media formats for organizations around the world. In addition to general news, feature and sports categories, the competition often includes special categories reflecting unique events from the previous year. The competition judged in 2010 included a special category for single photographs related to the Iranian presidential election. ³ The category, titled Civil Defiance, was defined for entrants as ‘A photograph that focuses on the Iranian presidential election in June and the worldwide conflicts and rallies stemming from those results through late December’ (POYi, 2009). ⁴

Photographs entered into competitions such as POYi may frame an issue or event in a certain way, but the images chosen for awards may reflect a different frame. Photographers and judges may exercise different criteria when selecting photographs in a competition environment, as was apparent in a category in the 2002 POYi competition for images related to the September 11 2001 terrorist attacks on New York and Washington, DC. The photographs entered reflected four dominant themes, and more than three-quarters of the entries fell into thematic categories depicting the event and the aftermath. However, more than half the awards in the category were conferred for photographs representing themes found in fewer than 10% of the entries (Kim, 2003). It is apparent that photographers and judges apply different criteria to their selection processes. Photographers may be looking for the images that best show their skills while capturing the moment or event. Among those images, judges look for the ones that stand out among the entries in some way, surpassing their expectations (Mendelson, 1999). Despite photographers’ selection of images that represent their best work, it is the ones selected by the judges that publicly validate the work and set standards that photojournalists strive to meet in following years. It is important, therefore, to not only consider frames apparent in the work photojournalists believe to be their best but also to compare them to frames apparent in the award-winning images, as it is through those selections that judges tell photojournalists how to succeed.

Prior research concludes photographs of international news most often present depictions of conflict and disaster, framing the locations as inhospitable to viewers in other countries. The perceived veracity of photographs and their lasting effects perpetuate the frame in the minds of viewers, and the repeated selection of photographs reflecting that frame as the best examples of photojournalism reinforces it for photographers as the preferred view. One could expect that photographs of the events surrounding the Iranian presidential election would focus on the conflict that followed the announcement of the results rather than on illustrations of issues central to the election or on campaign events.

However, those prior studies examined photographs of a variety of international events over time. The Iranian election was a specific event within a defined time span, and several categories of photographs identified in prior studies likely would not be relevant to this specific instance. In addition, photographs analyzed in many prior studies have incorporated an American perspective. With no direct American involvement, the Iranian election was more likely to be covered by international photographers, generally working for organizations that distribute images to publications in multiple countries. It is not certain they would visually frame the election events from the same perspective as those choosing the images to represent the best examples of photojournalism. The differences in the scope of content limit the development of specific hypotheses. This study, therefore, proposes the following research questions:

RQ1: How were the election events framed in the photographs submitted?

Method

Copies of the 66 digital photographs entered into the Civil Defiance category of the 2010 POYi competition were obtained from the POYi director. Two of the photographs were not related to the Iranian election and were excluded from consideration, leaving 64 photographs for examination. The unit of analysis was the individual photograph.

The 64 photographs examined were made by 22 different photographers. Of those, eight submitted only one image while the other 14 photographers each entered more than one image into the competition. There were eight different photographic agencies or news organizations represented by 15 photographers. ⁵ The remaining seven identified themselves as freelance photographers not affiliated with any specific organization.

To identify the visual framing of the Iranian presidential election, a thematic analysis was conducted on the photographs. Thematic analysis provides a means to encode qualitative data in order to identify patterns existing within the content of individual items. The patterns represent themes, which can be pre-existing or generated inductively through the analysis of the items. Thematic analysis is applicable to a wide variety of types of information (Boyatzis, 1998: 4–5) and is suitable for the identification and interpretation of themes in photographs.

Earlier longitudinal studies of award-winning international photographs utilized pre-existing thematic categories reflecting a broad range of events or topics that could be depicted in content over time. The categories used in those studies offered limited value to the current study of a specific event. For this study, thematic categories were identified by examination of the photographs using the constant comparative method of analysis (Glaser and Strauss, 1967). The constant comparative method allows individual items in a collection to be analyzed, compared to other items and separated into distinct groups.

The individual digital image files were printed out to facilitate the sorting process. An image was selected as a starting point and examined to identify dominant characteristics of the manifest content. The image was set aside, beginning a stack that would represent a category. Each subsequent image was examined in the same manner. Images that depicted content similar to those in an existing category were placed in the appropriate stack. New categories were begun with images depicting previously unobserved content. The process was repeated until each photograph was examined and assigned to a category.

Following the sort each category was examined to identify and define the theme represented in the content of the photographs. The themes were then compared to identify storylines corresponding to frames photographers employed to cover the election. An individual frame could correspond to an individual theme, such as violence between police and protestors. An individual frame also could be comprised of multiple themes. For example, themes of women portrayed individually and of women in groups both suggested photographers framing the election in terms of the participation of women. Following the sorting process a chi-square test was conducted to determine the level of significance in the distribution of the photographs among the categories.

The constant comparative method provides a means to generate categories from raw data and is not designed ‘to guarantee that two analysts working independently with the same data will achieve the same results’ (Glaser and Strauss, 1967: 103). It is helpful, however, to know whether the distinctions observed in the content are apparent to others, reflecting the reliability of the set of themes (Boyatzis, 1998: 50). To determine reliability, a second coder was trained to use the constant comparative method and asked to examine the images and separate them into categories. The second coder was not given any information regarding the categories identified by the first coder. There were differences in the assignment of individual photographs to categories, but there was considerable overlap in the broad categories identified by both coders. An intercoder reliability test of those broad categories yielded a Cohen’s kappa of .67, which Landis and Koch classify as substantial agreement (1977: 165).

POYi judging sessions often are recorded as a means of documenting the process. As the emphasis of this study is on the content of the photographs rather than the process of their selection, the judges’ comments and rationale for their decisions were not part of the analysis. The recording of the Civil Defiance category judging was reviewed following the analysis to determine what explanations the judges may have offered for their choices, aiding in the interpretation of the findings.

Results

The distribution of photographs among multiple photographers representing a diverse range of organizations suggests the photographs also might reflect a diverse range of content. The analysis of the photographs entered does indicate some diversity in the framing of the events. That diversity, however, is not apparent among the winning images, which primarily reflected one obvious frame.

The first research question asked how the election events were framed in the photographs entered into the competition. The analysis of the images revealed that the photographers were mindful of the overall category title: civil defiance. The submitted images generally depicted public participation in the election process through rallies and protests, but photographers found different ways to frame the issues and events surrounding the election. Through use of the constant comparative method, nine thematic categories of photographs were identified.

The violent protests that dominated news coverage following the announcement of the election results were a prominent subject for the photographers. Scenes depicting conflict comprised the largest category, accounting for 15 of the photographs or nearly one-quarter of the total (Table 1). Violent unrest was apparent in each of the photographs. Many portray a moment of violence or the bloodied participants remaining after, while others communicated the violent protests by including evidence of the fires that were part of the protests. Through the photographs in this category, photographers framed the election as a violent event.

OPEN IN VIEWER

Table 1.

Thematic categories represented in photographs entered.

Frame	Frequency	%
Violence	15	23.4
Rallies – group	11	17.2
Rallies – individual	9	14.1
Women – active	9	14.1
Women – portrait	7	10.9
Candidates	7	10.9
Pictorial/symbol	3	4.7
Soccer team	2	3.1
Mass crowd	1	1.6
Total	64	100.0

χ ² = 14.25, d.f. 7, p = .0469.

Photographers also framed the election in terms of the public involvement in the process through their participation in nonviolent rallies throughout the election process. The frame was communicated through two themes, focusing on the participation of groups or individuals. Group participation was the apparent theme in 11 photographs. They depicted both small and large groups of a few people, but individuals are identifiable in the images. There are no images of a mass, anonymous crowd in this group, indicating that not only were people taking part in the rallies, but that they did so in a very public way. The photographs generally are medium shots, showing at least some participants from about the waist up. The lack of violence does not, however, indicate a lack of emotion on the part of the participants. Several photographs depict a passionate involvement by rally participants but expressed in a nonviolent manner.

Photographers also framed this type of participation by moving in closer to the subjects. A larger group may form the backdrop in these nine photographs, but the focus is on individual involvement, allowing a viewer to connect with a single participant. An individual is clearly identifiable in most of the photographs, though in some the focus is on a single detail of participation, such as a green armband on a Mousavi supporter or a photograph of Ahmadinejad and colors of the Iranian flag on the arm of one of his supporters. Taken together, the 20 images depicting participation in nonviolent rallies outnumber those depicting violent protests.

In a similar vein, photographers framed the election in terms of the participation of women in two distinct manners. In nine photographs women are actively participating in rallies and protests, often holding up two fingers in a victory sign. Even a close-up image of two clasped female hands holding aloft a photograph of Mousavi depicts two outstretched fingers. The other six photographs featuring women are more like portraits, with women generally depicted alone in the frame. They sometimes show support for a candidate through the inclusion of a photograph or slogan, but instead of seeing women as active participants in the election the viewer encounters the subjects as people whose lives might be affected by its outcome. The choice of frame is understandable as Mousavi vowed in his campaign to review laws that discriminated against Iranian women, elevating their prominence in the election process.

Following the photographs of the protests and public participation in the election process are images of the candidates themselves. Mousavi, the challenger, is the focus of five of the seven photographs. He is shown with a large crowd of supporters in two images, and another shows him on a bus with supporters outside reaching toward the windows. In the other two photographs Mousavi is depicted alone in the frame, once waving to supporters and once in a portrait-style setting. The two images in the category of Ahmadinejad depict him once waving to supporters as he leaves an arena with his security staff and once in a close-up image delivering a speech. Through these images, Mousavi is framed as the candidate with popular appeal while Ahmadinejad is not shown with members of the public.

Of the remaining six photographs, only one directly communicated an obvious scene of participation in the election process. That image provided a wide view of Tehran’s Azadi Square. A distinctive landmark of the square, the Azadi Tower, appears in the background, and the space between the camera lens and the tower appears to be occupied by a solid sea of people. The Azadi Tower appears in other photographs depicting individuals or small groups of identifiable people, but this image is unique for its wide view showing the size of the crowd in the square. The emphasis is on the scope of the response to the election with little effort to make any one individual recognizable.

Three photographers chose to portray the events of the election indirectly through symbols rather than people. One photograph featured a torn poster of Mousavi displayed over a poster of Ahmadinejad, resulting in a combined image of the two candidates. Another image showed silhouettes behind a backlit Iranian flag. The third photograph showed remnants of roses lying on the street following a rally. The final two photographs entered also did not directly depict participation in election events. The two images are a group portrait of the Iranian national soccer team and a close up of the team captain at a World Cup qualifying match before the election. The captain and many of the players wore green wristbands during the game as a show of support for Mousavi.

To facilitate statistical analysis, the crowd in Azadi Square could be considered a symbol and added to the other photographs in that group to avoid a category consisting of a single image. The reassignment reduces the number of categories to eight. Using a one-way chi-square test for goodness of fit, the differences in distribution among the categories is significant (χ ² = 14.25, d.f. 7, p = .0469). Overall, the photographs primarily frame the election in terms of the voters and their participation in the election process. The photographs are largely event-driven, with a focus more on groups of people expressing a common concern than on individuals. The violent protests following the election are featured, but nonviolent gatherings before and after the election are more prominent among the photographs. There are relatively few photographs of the candidates, but even then the photographers included the public participation frame by showing Mousavi surrounded by supporters while Ahmadinejad is separated from the public.

The second research question asked how the election events were framed in the photographs selected to receive awards. The judges selected six photographs, conferring first, second and third place honors with three more receiving an Award of Excellence. The photographs overwhelmingly frame the election in terms of the post-election violence.

Of the six award-winning images, four come from the violence category and primarily focus on the physical toll borne by individuals. The first-place photograph depicts people carrying the body of a man who had been shot near a rally by pro-government forces. The second-place photograph shows a Mousavi supporter helping a riot-police officer who had been wounded in an altercation to escape from the group of protesters. A photograph of another Mousavi supporter holding a bloody cloth to his face received an Award of Excellence. Blood can be seen on the man’s face and hands and runs down one of his arms while a fire burns in the street in the background. A photograph of people in a street running toward a fire during one of the protests also received an Award of Excellence.

The other two award-winning photographs reflect the more peaceful public participation frame. The photograph of the mass of people gathered in Azadi Square received the third-place award. The other photograph to receive an Award of Excellence shows Mousavi in the center of the frame surrounded by a crowd of supporters with arms outstretched toward him. In both images the center of focus is situated far away from the photographer, providing room in the frame to emphasize the scope of public involvement in the event.

The third research question asked how the frames evident in the photographs entered into the competition would compare to the frames evident in the award-winning photographs. Both sets of photographs reflect the civil defiance theme of the competition category, emphasizing the participation of citizens in the election process over the activities of candidates. The answers to the first two research questions clearly show a distinction between the two sets of photographs in the diversity of the frames used to communicate that participation.

The entries do not ignore the violence but primarily frame the election through the mostly peaceful involvement of a concerned public. Whether alone or in small groups, most of the images photographers selected as their best work framed the election process through the involvement of ordinary citizens. Some photographs depicted a large group of people, but rather than showing a faceless crowd most of those images featured identifiable individuals in the foreground, providing an opportunity for the viewer to make an emotional connection with the subjects.

In comparison, the judges identified the post-election violence as the most salient theme among the photographs entered, framing the election as a violent event with individuals as victims. In contrast to the photographs entered, two-thirds of the award-winning images reflect the post-election violence theme. Three of the four photographs depict individuals who have been bloodied in the protests.

In focusing so heavily on the images of violence the judges overlooked other prominent themes among the entries. In particular, the photographers identified the participation of women in the election process as a prominent story, focusing on them in one-quarter of the photographs entered. In contrast, no women are identifiable among the award-winning photographs. Among that set of images, the election was exclusively a male activity.

Taken as a whole, the entries frame the election as one in which a wide range of citizens participated, expressing through diverse means their support for preferred candidates and their dispute of the outcome. The frame presented through the award-winning photographs, however, is that the widespread dispute of the election results resulted in a violent governmental response to that participation.

Discussion

This study examined visual framing of the 2009 Iranian presidential election. The comparison of images photographers identified as their best work to those judges selected as the Pictures of the Year presents two very different views of the election.

Prior research suggested the photographs would reflect events during the process rather than issues central to the election. International news coverage is event driven (Horvit, 2003). Viewers rarely see photographs that seek to explain issues but do see the disruption that may follow when they are not addressed or resolved to the satisfaction of those involved. The election itself was an event, and photographers and judges did select photographs that reflected events. However, the campaign period presented opportunities for photographers to attempt to visually communicate issues central to the campaigns.

Framing involves selecting specific features of a situation to make salient in a form of communication (Entman, 1993: 52). For photographers covering the election, the salient feature was the participation of Iranian citizens in the election process. The photographers did emphasize events over issues. The majority of photographs entered depict rallies before and after the election as well as the violent confrontations that followed the announcement of results. In the non-violent images, photographers framed the election in terms of citizen involvement. Photographs depicted individuals, putting a human face to the election that viewers could emotionally connect to, and they depicted crowds of people to communicate the scope of public involvement. Overall, the photographers framed the election in a way that was sympathetic to citizens seeking meaningful participation in the process of selecting their president through photographs showing activities that would be recognizable to viewers within western democracies.

Within the event-driven context the photographers were able to communicate one significant issue in the election: the widespread participation of women. Both campaigns acknowledged prevalent discrimination against women in Iran and promised to work for greater equality. The photographers reflected the stake women had in the election, featuring them prominently in one-quarter of the photographs entered.

The photographs selected by the judges tell a different story. The most salient aspect for the judges was the violent responses following the announcement of Ahmedinajad’s victory. The photographs frame the election as an instance of government in power using force to preserve that power, with disastrous results for people seeking greater democratic participation. Images of violence did constitute the largest single category of photographs entered, but the group of award-winning images completely overlooks other themes prominent among the entries. The two non-violent images among the award winners illustrate the breadth of public involvement, but individuals are shown either as participants in or victims of violence. A few women appear to be visible among the crowd of Mousavi supporters in one image. Otherwise, a segment of the population with significant involvement in the election process is invisible among the photographs identified by the judges as the best of the entries.

The difference in prominent frames between the two sets of photographs can be attributed to another aspect of framing: the goal of the communicator (Entman, 1993: 52). Photographers choose content and make images to visually communicate what they believe to be the important aspects of a story. Photographers and judges both select photographs based on their interpretations of a competition category and the overall goals of the competition. Judges also weigh technical merits of a photograph, such as lighting and composition, against content considerations, such as the moment depicted and the photograph’s ability to represent an event. Judges also look for novelty in photographs, rewarding the images that stand out from others and move beyond what has been done previously (Mendelson, 1999).

The photographs of post-election violence can be considered novel compared to election photographs of political rallies or of citizens voting commonly seen by western viewers, where elections generally do not end in bloodshed. Compared to the photographs entered, however, the award-winning images reflect the same frames of conflict or civil unrest often observed in reports of international news (Greenwood and Smith, 2007; Kim and Smith, 2005; Langton, 1991).

There is evidence that the judges were aware of the narrow framing represented among the award-winning images. Their recorded comments from the deliberations indicate they were aware of the significance of the participation of women in the election and the reflection of that frame among the entries. The comments also indicate the judges considered the entries not only as the best photography but also as a record of the event and how it was perceived, interpreting literally their selection of the Pictures of the Year (POYi, 2010). In the end though, the judges determined that the best photographs in the category depicted either violence or the scope of public involvement in acts of defiance.

The framing of the entries and award-winning selections must be considered within the context of how the competition category may have been interpreted by the photographers and judges. The category name was Civil Defiance, and the description indicated it was for images of the election but also ‘the worldwide conflicts and rallies stemming from those results’ (POYi, 2009). One judge pointed out that ‘civil defiance isn’t just violence’ (POYi, 2010), but it is conceivable to think the photographers and judges may have felt constrained to enter and select the images that communicated defiance in a more visually obvious manner.

Regardless of the potential influences on the entry and judging of the images, there is an implication for photojournalism in the final selection of images for awards. Some photographers clearly worked to look beyond the obvious events, presenting a view of the Iranian election that encompassed more than post-election violence. They framed the election through individuals, especially women, showing the world how vested Iranian citizens were in the process. Their efforts were not recognized, as the award-winning images validate the focus on violence that reflects existing patterns of photographs of international news.

Through their selections, judges set standards that define excellence in photojournalism. Photographers strive to meet those standards, as recognition for one’s work can lead to career advancement. For international news that can mean continued narrow framing among the photographs available to editors, who also may consider those standards when selecting photographs for publication. At the end of the line is the audience, which continues to receive a view of other countries framed in terms of violence and conflict. Viewers generally perceive photographs as truthful (Adatto, 1993; Sontag, 1977) and give them greater consideration than they do text (Coleman, 2010), and viewers consistently presented with a narrow view of the world are susceptible to adopting that frame for themselves (Fahmy and Kim, 2008). McQuail (2010: 82) suggests a purpose of media is to distribute knowledge ‘in the widest sense of the word’ and that media organizations should present diverse points of view to stimulate debate. Fulfilling that role requires encouragement for photographers to explore different frames of international news.

Prior research of visual framing of international news has been limited to photographs selected as part of a process, either editorial or contest judging. This study extends the area of research by including photographs selected by the photographers as examples of their best work in covering the election. The study affirms concepts of framing theory that relate selection to the goals of communicators and suggests the frames of international news presented to an audience are determined more by the practices of journalistic institutions than by the perspective of individual photojournalists.

This study is itself limited by its focus on one event and on one competition. There were several pro-democracy events in African and Middle Eastern nations in 2011. Those movements were not organized around elections as in Iran but did include public demonstrations and, in some cases, violence. As Fahmy and Kim (2008) note, further attention should be given to visual framing of international events. Comparisons of visual framing of the events by a diverse group of photographers and news organizations would help to further understand institutional influences on the framing of international news for an audience.