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Editorial: Photo rules hide the truth

Some of war’s most memorable images include the wounded and the dead. It is impossible to chronicle a war without including that defining characteristic. But if the most current ground rules for embedded photographers in Iraq had been in effect in earlier wars, none of the photographs you see here would have been published.

The rules imposed on photographers embedding with American troops in Iraq and Afghanistan require a signed release from a wounded service member before a photograph can be published. A signed release? In the midst of combat?

The practical impact of that rule is to bar photos of the wounded. That may be what the spinmeisters want, but it is counter to the best interests of the people they serve. War is an ugly business. Hiding that fact is like hiding the truth.

There are legitimate reasons to place modest limits on the freedom of the press. Families should not learn of the death or wounding of their loved ones on TV or in the papers, for example. The old rules made accommodations for that, barring publishers from distributing photos of recognizable wounded troops until families had been notified. It worked just fine.

Americans should not wage war with blinders on. This current rule is foolish and it should be rescinded at once.