2008 Woodie Awards
Boundary-breaking speakers at SJU
Muhammed: Pulitzer Prize winning photojournalist for the New York Times
Christina Heiser, News Editor
Issue date: 4/25/07Section: News
Pulitzer Prize winning photojournalist Ozier Muhammed spoke to a group of students and faculty on April 17 about his award-winning photographs taken in Ethiopia, Iraq, and New Orleans.
The lecture, entitled "From Quagmire to Deluge: Telling the World's Stories in Photographs," was hosted by the New York Times.
Muhammed began his career in 1972, working for Newsday. During his tenure there,
Muhammed received a Polk award for news photography. In 1985, he won the Pulitzer Prize in International Reporting, along with Josh Friedman and Dennis Bell, for a series of reports entitled "Africa, the Desperate Continent." Muhammed began his time as a photographer for the New York Times in 1992. Muhammed began by showing
some of his more recent photographs, which were taken in Iraq and other parts of the Middle East.
During his time in Iraq, Muhammed, along with other people, stayed as an embed with
the 1st Marine Division.
"There were certain rules we had to follow," Muhammed said. "We couldn't disclose the location of where pictures were taken."
Muhammed faced many difficulties while staying with the other embeds. "We were traveling in seven-ton trucks," he said. "We were constantly moving and only had two changes of clothes. It was rough, but it's a lot worse now."
When they finally reached Baghdad, which took three weeks because of the immensely difficult conditions, Muhammed said that the city was fairly intact, although, "areas were smoldering. There was a bit of chaos with people taking advantage of the fact that there was no local authority.
After discussing his photographs from the Middle East, Muhammed moved on to his collection from New Orleans, where he arrived only a few days after the levees had breached. He described one of the more devesated areas of Louisiana, called Plackman's Parish as "submerged under water. It was the hardest hit area of Louisiana," he said. "Houses literally moved off their foundations."
The lecture, entitled "From Quagmire to Deluge: Telling the World's Stories in Photographs," was hosted by the New York Times.
Muhammed began his career in 1972, working for Newsday. During his tenure there,
Muhammed received a Polk award for news photography. In 1985, he won the Pulitzer Prize in International Reporting, along with Josh Friedman and Dennis Bell, for a series of reports entitled "Africa, the Desperate Continent." Muhammed began his time as a photographer for the New York Times in 1992. Muhammed began by showing
some of his more recent photographs, which were taken in Iraq and other parts of the Middle East.
During his time in Iraq, Muhammed, along with other people, stayed as an embed with
the 1st Marine Division.
"There were certain rules we had to follow," Muhammed said. "We couldn't disclose the location of where pictures were taken."
Muhammed faced many difficulties while staying with the other embeds. "We were traveling in seven-ton trucks," he said. "We were constantly moving and only had two changes of clothes. It was rough, but it's a lot worse now."
When they finally reached Baghdad, which took three weeks because of the immensely difficult conditions, Muhammed said that the city was fairly intact, although, "areas were smoldering. There was a bit of chaos with people taking advantage of the fact that there was no local authority.
After discussing his photographs from the Middle East, Muhammed moved on to his collection from New Orleans, where he arrived only a few days after the levees had breached. He described one of the more devesated areas of Louisiana, called Plackman's Parish as "submerged under water. It was the hardest hit area of Louisiana," he said. "Houses literally moved off their foundations."
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