How We Got Those Border Pictures
 How We Got Those Border Pictures
Your lens to the internet's most powerful photographs.
 📸For Your 👀 Only:  Allison Dinner for BuzzFeed News This week, pictures from the border of thousands of desperate people trying to make their way into the United States captured the nation's attention. Allison Dinner and Paul Ratje showed US officials on horseback attempting to corral people who were crossing the Rio Grande, and Adrees Latif showed thousands living under tarps under an international bridge.
When Mexican immigration officials began conducting late-night raids to find and deport Haitian families who were denied access into the US, Stephania Corpi documented a heartbreaking scene. Wielding a piece of glass from a broken mirror, a father squared off against officials in a tense and bloody standoff, pleading that there was nothing for them to return to in Haiti. The officials eventually left his family, who fled into the night; many other people were loaded into vans after failing to produce identification.
 Stephania Corpi for BuzzFeed News Their pictures and others have raised hard questions and intense reactions. Multiple members of Congress have officially protested the treatment of people at the border, the Department of Homeland Security has suspended the use of horses, and the US special envoy to Haiti has resigned. The Biden administration has publicly declared that anyone attempting to enter the US illegally will be deported under Title 42, a policy that cites the pandemic as the reason for allowing border agents to quickly turn back asylum-seekers. Despite this, it is estimated that thousands of people have been quietly released into the US to await immigration hearings, according to NPR.
To get these pictures into the public eye was no small task. Del Rio, Texas, is a remote town, hours from any major airport. The US Border Patrol quickly shut off access to the camp, closing nearby roads and forcing reporters to travel through Mexico to follow the story, risking legal charges if they crossed back into the US. Many photographers have chosen to stay in Mexico and work from there as a precaution, using long lenses and drones to show what was happening on the other side.
In Mexico, the story was also difficult to report on. People attempting to cross the border are seeking information on food, shelter, and safety from reporters who have questions of their own. An evolving breaking news situation means a lot is unknown: whether the border will reopen or if deportations will start, whether access will be cut off or the public will lose interest, if it makes sense to cover this via short stories or wait to publish a longer piece with more clarity. It's stressful, and everyone is trying to make the best decisions with limited information and through language barriers.  Allison Dinner for BuzzFeed News In these types of situations, outlets are often competing for exclusive access, unique images, and quick updates. Often, multiple reporters and photographers go into the field in a group for safety reasons. The days are long and unpredictable, with officials giving conflicting information and reporting teams trying to keep track of multiple sources and storylines. Stories and images are filed at odd hours, to be published by editors who are far removed from the scene.
Journalists hope that media coverage will highlight a situation, but many of the immigrants don't want their faces photographed out of fear that it may hurt their future chances of asylum. Tthis makes coverage even more challenging for a photojournalist to document scenes in an empathetic and relatable way.
 Allison Dinner for BuzzFeed News  📸MORE FROM OUR DESK 📸 As always, here are some of the best photo stories from around the internet, and what we loved from our desk.  Adrees Latif / Reuters
THE JOY, PRIDE AND HISTORY OF MESOAMERICAN INDIGENOUS PEOPLE, IN PHOTOS  Cinthyia Santos Briones
11 EXHIBITIONS THAT WE'RE EXCITED ABOUT AT PHOTOVILLE  Jaida Grey Eagle
5 THINGS WE LOVED THIS WEEK 1. BuzzFeed Launches Afghan Journalist Fellowship
2. Gillian Laub's family photos in The New Yorker
3. This absolutely wild story about freediving
4. This delightful story about the oldest park ranger in America
5. Do NOT miss this profile on Tyler Gaca, the most endearing artist on TikTok
LAST LOOK  Georg Wendt/dpa vía AP German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who is retiring after 16 years, made a surprise visit to a bird park in Marlow, Germany. It....did not go well but made for great memes. "We are making photographs to understand what our lives mean to us." — Ralph Hattersley That's it for this week! Kate, Kirsten + Pia
📝 This letter was edited and brought to you by the News Photo team. Kate Bubacz is the photo director based in New York and loves dogs. Pia Peterson is a photo editor based in Brooklyn. You can always reach us here.
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