Historic photo

We had to choose a historic photo for my photography class to discuss. I chose a photo taken in-house at the Washington Post on April 30, 1973. In the center are Carl Bernstein and Bob Woodward, the two reporters credited with breaking open the Watergate Scandal and tying it to the White House, which in turn led to President Richard Nixon’s resignation roughly 16 months later. They are discussing the next day’s stories with publisher Katharine Graham; Benjamin C. Bradlee, executive editor, right; and Howard Simons, managing editor.

If you consider the far edge of the table as a horizon line, approximately two thirds of the photo is for the human subjects. The many shelved books rain down in vertical lines which are to some extent picked up again by the larger items on the desk coming in toward the lens. The books on the top shelf are parted with roughly half leaning left and half leaning right, which serves to create an arrow effect on the two young reporters.

Color news photos were decades way from being standard, but the black and white serves this photo well anyway by breaking a cluttered, paper strewn office down into simpler, less busy images. The loud, 1970s wide ties are muted into shades of gray as are the hundreds of books behind them.

I have a strong affection for this photo, even though I would have been about five months old at the time. I believe it captures in single moment the conflicting energy and fear that must have been running through those five people as they planned their next steps to report on Watergate.

While not an artistic placement of the people, they are caught at fortuitous angles and expressions that capture there various roles within a newsroom. Woodward and Bernstein’s lean frames are sitting very close to each other, suggesting that they are the young team on the front lines. Despite the seriousness of their siege on the White House, or more likely because of it, they appear almost giddy, especially when compared to the other worried people in the photo.

Publisher Katharine Graham is the severe matron. It’s her employees, her paper. She has already gone through a challenging period with the federal government in 1971 with the release of the “Pentagon Papers” by her publication and the New York Times. From another angle seated at the same level the image of an exasperated father figure, Howard Simons, with a less dark expression but with a look of warning.

Ben Bradlee looks on from an elevated position (I think that is him). Some of the people in this photo are old enough to see all too clearly the consequences of the series of articles they are running. The two reporters seem to understand they are working with something enormous, but perhaps don’t yet appreciate the ramifications of embroiling an American president, particularly one as notably vindictive as Nixon, in a scandal.

Or perhaps I read too much into things.