Protests, clashes, conflicts, and fire seem to be a common theme in this week's news photography. First, conflicts appear between protesters and police in Lesbos, Greece, as migrants and refugees protest conditions of the Kara Tepe Camp. In Paris, France, sewer workers march in the streets on the 9th day of protests against President Macron's pension reform. A picture of an Iraqi demonstrator depicts the conflict of anti-government protests in Najaf. A demonstrator at a protest against President Trump's Middle East policies, in West Bank (a territory bordering Israel and Jordan), hits a border policeman with a molotov cocktail. In Syria, a protester fires a cannon as part of a rebel move against the government. Finally, in Australia, fires rage, putting horses in danger.
From this selection of images, it appears that photography this week is very focused on conflicts and clashes, and as a result, depict much destruction and fire. All of the images are dramatic, filled with bright, warm colors, many of them with expressive faces. I think this is something that comes out of the need to capture the most dramatic images from the events with the biggest impacts, and the necessity of translating those moments into attention-drawing images that will lead to a click. In a less cynical point of view, I'd say that these images are prominent in the news because they spark human emotion, interest, and sympathy--and that makes these images and events more newsworthy.
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