THE ED ’ S DESK by SEAN FALCONER the ed ’ s desk
Setting the Record
Straight
A
monthly magazine focused on inspirational ‘ people stories ’ is completely reliant on a steady supply of two things . The first essential is good stories , and we seldom have problems finding these , thanks to the incredible athletes of every running age and ability that make up the South African running community . The second essential is good pictures , because without them , we ’ d have page after page of just words , which would not be all that stimulating to look at , nor that easy to read … no matter how well the articles were written .
One of Morgan Cardiff ’ s pics published with that article
While publications focused on ‘ how to ’ content can use stock imagery from a photo library to illustrate many of their articles , Modern Athlete ’ s articles tend to be about a specific athlete or event , and thus we need pics of that athlete or event , not stock images of models . We therefore generally ask the featured athletes whether they have pics we can use , and we also use pics sent to us by various event organisers and PR companies . Another invaluable source is SA ’ s original race pic company , Action Photo SA , with whom we have a wonderful working relationship , and I ’ d like to say a huge thank you to Johanna , Devorah and the team , for always sending us the pics we request .
Wherever we source pics from , we do our best to make sure we have permission to use them , and to correctly credit the photographers . However , there are times when we get it wrong , such as publishing a pic we thought we had permission to use , then finding out we did not , or incorrectly crediting a pic to the wrong photographer . And even if that happened a long time back , as Editor of this mag , I believe it is my responsibility to give credit where it is due .
We Got It Wrong in 2019
A few weeks ago , I received a mail from photographer Morgan Cardiff ( www . rhysmorganimages . com ) asking about some of his pics of Dave Chamberlain ’ s Hug Run , published in our September 2019 edition with an article about Dave ’ s 50 Two Oceans runs in 50 days . Morgan wanted to know how we got the pics , and who gave permission for us to use them , and worse , why they were incorrectly credited to journalist Chris Ord .
The article was written by a former freelance contributor , who also sourced the pics , and I answered Morgan that I simply could not remember what was said or done nearly three years ago . Also , I couldn ’ t check the mails from that edition , as I deleted a lot of 2019 mails a year or two ago during a periodic clean-out of mail folders . What I could vaguely remember was that the pics were supplied to us by somebody we spoke to for that article , be it Dave , or the charity he was running for , or a PR company promoting the story , or another journo who covered the story , or one of Dave ’ s running friends . Whomever it was that gave us the pics , we must have been led to believe that we could go ahead and use those pics , and that we had the photographer ’ s name correct , but it turns out we didn ’ t .
I completely understand Morgan ’ s frustration , because photographers put time , money and creativity into their trade , and all too often their pics are used without permission , credit or payment , especially on social media . That is precisely why I try to check pic usage and credits before publishing , and I ’ m proud of the fact that we have only had a tiny number of this type of incident since we launched Modern Athlete in 2009 . But when we do get it wrong , we own up to that , and try to make it right – even if that is three years later .
Now , I do not believe in ‘ burying ’ retractions , corrections or apologies at the back of the publication , and so I told Morgan I would set the record straight in one of the most prominent positions I can in the mag , right near the front , in my Ed ’ s Letter , with a sincere apology and a belated acknowledgement of his work . Thanks , Morgan , and while I am on the topic , I also want to say a huge thank you to all the photographers who have contributed to this mag over the years .
Back to the Present …
With that done , I ’ d like to welcome you all to the latest edition , and invite you to put your feet up and enjoy the inspirational ‘ people stories ’ and good reads we ’ ve collected for you this month – and all the great pics to go with them . Special mention must also be made of our graphic designer , Caroline Collings , who works her magic on these articles each month and makes this mag look great and read well . Huge thanks , Caro !
Sean Falconer
Images : Nicole Hayes , Morgan Cardiff
6
ISSUE 152 | www . modernathlete . co . za The article about Dave Chamberlain , from our September 2019 edition