While talking about visual rhetoric in my writing one class, we talked about the strategies of symmetry and shape and how they can be used to communicate certain messages that our brains recognize but we don't see at first. The cover of the September 2008 issue of People Magazine was one example my professor made to prove people's brains are influenced by proximity and shape. The cover is of John McCain and his family. The title reads, "Meet the McCains; An intimate look at the trials and triumphs of a big, blended, not-so-typical family." The photo, is of all seven children, and Mr. and Mrs. John McCain. The problem that arose throughout the public, is that their adopted daughter Bridget, of Bangladeshi, is significantly lower in the photo and does not seem to be a member of the family. It also has all the males of the family at the top, which caused many viewers to question the views of John McCain.
This article may have tried to depict counter storytelling by showing that the sister is part of the family and is in the family photo, but the rhetoric message that most people in America who read People Magazine was that fact that the girl of dissimilar ethnicity was on a different level than the rest of the McCains. A more puzzling fact is that it happens once again in the actually article. Bridget is the only member of the family sitting on the ground, while the rest of the family sits on the couch or stands. An act like this could be perceived as racialization, interjecting the fact that she is of color into the main message of the photo and setting her apart.
I do not believe that this is purposeful or part of a hate crime because I do not believe that John McCain would let this go to print if he knew what its subliminal message was. However I wonder if the message that the photographer was trying to communicate in the placement and arranging of these photos was that of racism.
Very interesting, the rhetorical analyzation of the photography. I would view the cover page as the women being in front, as opposed to being on the bottom. Their placement could also have to do with height - those guys do look to be very tall.
ReplyDeleteThough in the second photo, having her sit on the floor whereas everyone else sits on the couch or stands, can be interpreted quite negatively. I wonder who the photographer was, if he/she is of white descent or not.
Some people might say, "Eh, it's just a few pictures." I think that as a politician, the photography is an important element to make sure it won't be conveyed in negative lights as much as possible, particularly with that of racism.