Propaganda or news: Should media publish government’s child-detention photos?

Based on the photographic evidence, living conditions inside government-run detention centers for immigrant children separated from their parents in south Texas look reasonably orderly and clean. But there’s a major catch: All of the photographs depicting life inside the facilities have been supplied by the government itself. There’s been no independent documentation; federal officials, citing the children’s privacy, have barred journalists from taking photographs or video when they’ve been permitted inside. This has left news organizations with a quandary: Do they publish the handouts supplied by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) — which has an incentive to make its facilities look as humane and comfortable as possible — or do they reject the photos as essentially propaganda?

The New York Times, for one, has taken the latter course. On June 18, it said it would not publish CBP-supplied photos. One of the government-supplied photos — a shot of children sprawled on thin mattresses under mylar blankets — was featured prominently by many news organizations on June 19. The photo ran atop The Washington Post’s front page, although a caption spelled out the context.