Ken Light's HanoiJohn Photo - Doctored

Newsday has an article up stating that this 1971 photo is actually a doctored photograph.

As a 20-year-old photographer documenting the country's struggle over the Vietnam War, Ken Light snapped the picture of John Kerry at a peace rally in Mineola. It captured the future senator alone at a podium, squinting into the sun.

Light did not photograph Jane Fonda on that warm June Sunday in 1971. The actress, who is reviled by many Vietnam veterans for her vocal stance against the war, did not even attend.

But when opponents of the Democratic presidential hopeful began e-mailing Light's picture to one another four days ago, it depicted Fonda standing by Kerry's side. The photo had been doctored.

"I'm horrified," said Light, 52, who grew up in East Meadow and now heads the graduate photojournalism program at the University of California at Berkeley. "I think this kind of alteration is probably one of the scariest forms of trickery, particularly when it's done against a political candidate."

I had wondered why Brutally Honest was on the receiving end of one referral after another from search engines looking for the string "HanoiJohn". Then I saw that Drudge had linked to the Newsday article that referred to the offending picture I had made a part of my Pictures Worth A 1000 Words photo album.

So now I have a dilemma.

Readers, should I remove the picture from the photo album? Or I could simply amend the caption and refer to the Newsday article?

:)

UPDATE: This commentary has been the subject of many, many search engine referrals. For the sake of the rabid leftists who've posted their own comments below, and others who are interested, I've obviously left the picture up, doing my small part to spread the truth about this photo. Unfortunately, the Newsday link is no longer valid so I'm linking to Snopes.com where this entire story (and the photo) is thoroughly debunked. You leftists who are grateful can leave me a tip below:

Comments

[Randall]

You could simply create a sub-category called 'political art' within your 'pictures worth a thousand words'category and continue on.
It would be a shame to lose such a worthy reminder of Senator Kerry.

[Mike]

Oh, get off of it! Misinformation and character assasination of this sort only muddies further the already-murky waters of our fetid political sewer.
This is just more Willie-Horton dirty trix that obscure real issues and manipulate the electorate. With real confidence in the rightness of the cause, one has no need to resort to such nonsense, and will instead hew to the high road and speak one's own truths, firmly, AND live by them...
I ain't saying nothing, I'm just saying...

[Mike]

Oh, sorry, - I forgot!
Ummm, "Brutally Honest", or "Moronically, Simplisitically Jingoistic"?
Just asking...

[jeff]

I surfed to see the doctored photo. Political beliefs aside, doctored photos just ain't the behavior I expect in US politics. Was this the work of a well oiled machine or some twit with Photoshop and too much time on his hands? Please leave it up, link to the Newsday article so that all may know not to believe everything they see on the web.

[Ev]

Why don't you post the picture from this CNN news article?
http://www.cnn.com/2002/US/09/30/sproject.irq.regime.change/

instead of your propaganda?

Oh, by the way... you're ex military and can probably answer this question...
Why didn't the jets scramble on 9/11/01? They had more than 30 minutes to do so. Why didn't Washington area jets scramble?

[chett]

I for one think you should keep up the good work.
too many of us dont think of what has realy slipped past us with people like KERRY & FONDA.
TO bad wish I had a way to show the world what
is realy happoning.
THANK,S
CHETT

[Rick]

Chett,

Thanks for the props...

[Trollificus]

Amusing that those on the left think the accusation "Willie Horton dirty tricks" actually means anything.

Horton should not have been let out, and committed a horrible crime when he was. If you want to attack a candidate's record on crime, you can't go with anecdotal evidence?? WTF?? That's how we do ALL our environmental policy...

"But wait!" you say. "Horton's release had nothing to do with Dukakis' positions on crime!"

Correct. And the fact that the economy got fat on fraud and speculation during the Clinton years and the bubble burst after he left office doesn't have much to do with Bush's economic policies, either, but that doesn't stop Democrats from making wildly inaccurate causalities, does it?

Be still, ye kettle...

[buddy G]

Either way you look at it, they both (Kerry & Fonda) had the same agenda, they might as well have been together in that photo. It should have been captioned "Two Viet Nam Traitors".