An organization that supports American troops and their families is appalled that The Associated Press published the photograph of a dying U.S. Marine in Afghanistan, against the wishes of his family.
On August 14, Lance Cpl. Joshua Bernard was struck by a rocket-propelled grenade during a Taliban ambush in the Helmand province of southern Afghanistan. An AP photographer embedded with Bernard's unit photographed the Marine after he suffered severe leg injuries. He was evacuated to a field hospital where he later died on the operating table. AP waited until after Bernard's funeral to distribute its story and the picture. An AP reporter met with Bernard's parents, allowing them to see the image. But when Bernard's father saw the photo, he opposed its publication, saying it was disrespectful to his son's memory. Defense Secretary Robert Gates even sent a letter to AP's president, asking that the news organization respect the wishes of Bernard's father and not publish the photo. But AP refused, saying "We feel it is our journalistic duty to show the reality of the war there, however unpleasant and brutal that sometimes is." Brian Wise, executive director of Families United For Our Troops and Their Mission, calls AP's behavior an egregious violation of the public trust. "Dismissing the family's concerns is something the American people should know about and the Associated Press should apologize for," he suggests. "We believe that this is one of the most egregious and one of the most tragic violations of the trust that the American people put in the Associated Press." Wise says Families United is urging AP to mitigate the damage that has already been done by permanently removing the photo from its news wire so no more media outlets can re-publish it.
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