Another Photo Gallery on America...

Last week, Tagesschau, a major state-run television news program posted a photo essay on the United States entitled "Unknown America: Beyond the Stars" by German photographer and journalist Sebastian Hesse. Not surprisingly, it has the mandatory gun-shop photo and the pictures not taken in Washington, DC or New York City seem to focus mainly on run-down buildings. And naturally, out of the essay's 28 photos, Tagesschau selected the gun-shop pic to run with its article.

"Gun Shop Angie": Tagesschau feeds its audience another Michael Moore caricature. (source)

But to be fair to Mr. Hesse, there are some interesting photos, and all in all, his work is a bit better than the disgusting gallery of stereotypes recently run by Stern.

Comments

[Rofe]

Not to dispute your point about Stern's bias (which generally drives me batty), but they did have a very interesting photo spread recently from a photographer who previously worked for Annie Leibowitz. (My quick search on their site didn't turn up the spread or his name.)

From what I understand (and what was shown in Stern), his portraits are all rather extreme close ups of well-known folks. I remember seeing Jack Nickolson, Lance Armstrong and Condi Rice. I also recall that all the photos published were Americans.

Some nice stuff that was a departure from Stern's usual.

Cheers,

Ray I can see the slobber dripping from your flew..... :-))))))

[poguemahone]

The memory of John "I served in Vietnam" Kerry shooting those ducks is SEARED into his mind I tell ya : )

[Lou Minatti]

I'm gonna have to Google up some images of "regular" Germans again! :-) There's the childless couple who never wanted kids because they wouldn't fit with their lifestyle, there's the guy in Bavaria who insists on wearing leiderhosen, there's the skinhead...

BTW, congrats for the aborted Instalanche. I see Glenn Reynolds linked to you this morning, but he posted the wrong URL!

[James]

Whatever. An American photographer could go to Germany and take similar photos and not be able to sell the pictures back home to any magazine: Americans just wouldn't care. Or more importantly: they don't have such fragile pretentious notions that need to be routinely reinforced with pre-approved party-like newspeak.

The Tagesschau piece reveals far more about German attitudes than it reveals about America. It shamelessly validates their existing predilections of what "Amerikanishe Verhaltnisse" are really like: Gun totting American - Muentefering's equivocation of American capitalists as locusts.

Blasphemy.

[SleepingInSeattle]

I watched the photo gallery, kind of bizarre selection of photos. I liked the photo of the two beat to hell cars on the corner, fascinating.

[George M.]

How often are pictures published in Germany of the "Rothenburger Kanibal." You know, the guy who put a Hanibal Lector style ad in the personals, asking for a male lover "to devour." He actually found one. Just like Jeffery Dahlmer, he kept his lover's organs in the refrigerator, "to hold him over till later."

Also, whatever happened to Gerry Schroeders two East German born cousins. These ladies lived in Eisenach and worked as cleaning ladies for their entire lives. During a visit to Eisenach, Gerry got out of his Mercedes and actually visited these poorer relations for the first time in his 69 years.

And of course, there is hope for Jan Ulrich. He can now live out of the shadow of Lance Armstrong.

What has happened to Frankie Potente since she returned to Berlin? Does she know that Michael Jackson is thinking of moving to Berlin? Frankie does sort of look like Lisa Marie.

[Joe]

I think this is super if this entrainment for the Germans. I surely do not want then to be unhappy. Besides they need some distractions right now.

If they want to feel, their situation as a nation is superior to that of the US, then by all means let them continue to believe that. If articles like this help in that belief, then more should be published.

You know in a few short weeks there is going to be a new party in power (maybe) and this is going to solve all the internal problems they currently face. So while life in very good in Germany, it is only going to get better.

Don’t believe me? Ask any German.

[williamP]

What disgusting drivel. I really am starting to become anti-German.

william don't hesitate. just be! :-]

[Der Doofmann]

Herr Hesse

Vielen Dank fuer ihre tollen Bilder.

Sie zeigen wieder einmal wie die deutschen Presseonkels geschult unter Hammer und Sichel mit High Tech Apparaten doch nur in der lage sind stumpfe Propagandabilder zu erstellen.

Ja,ich weiss ja ihre hinkende Pressebude braucht etwas was den deutschen Leser nun nach jahrelanger Gehirnwaesche letzendlich von den innerdeutschen Problemchen ablenkt.Aber doch nicht so bitte!

Bleiben sie doch mit ihrem Knipser einfach im Land.da gibt es mit Sicherheit viel mehr abzulichten.Oder?

Da muessen sich doch ein paar Glatzen finden lassen die beim Paradelaufen mit Baseballschlaegern einigen Widerwilligen etwas frische Luft zuwedeln.

Oder wie waere es mit ein paar lustigen Bildern aus dem trautem Heim deutscher Sozialempfaenger.

Auch im Bundestag liessen sich da mit dem Blizlicht einige schlafendende wecken.

Nun mal ehrlich Herr Hesse,unter uns,warum sind sie eigentlich in die USA geflogen um dort Bilder zu machen?

War es weil man ihnen dasselbe vorhaben in einigen afrikanischen Staaten und China verboten hatte?

Oder war es weil sie ihr Chef dazu gezwungen hat dieser Saftarsch.

Oder haben sie es immer noch nicht verdaut das George W. Bush erneut gewaehlt wurde?

Wie gesagt,so nicht!

Zwei ihrer Bilder sind ganz toll,das erste ist das Schattenbild der behelmten Polizisten bei der Wahlveranstaltung der Republikaner,es erinnert mich stark an eine Szene aus dem "Panzerkreuzer Potemkin".
Sie wissen sicher welche Szene ich meine.
Das zweite Bild ist die Waehlerin vor dem Wahllokal der Republikaner.
Es erinnert mich an ihre Frau welche waehrend ihrer Abwesenheit etwas herunter gekommen ist.Und anstatt ihr nun etwas nettes aus den USA mitzubringen (zb. einen Navaho Dreamcatcher) bringen sie ihr nur solche beschissenen Fotos mit.Ehrlich mal.

[moptop]

As long as the German's don't start building tanks and airplanes again, they can suck on their thumbs all they want. Better they do this than decide again that they need to kill some subset of their population to fix their problems.

[Peter P. Haase]

Diese ewig erfolglosen Versuche von europaeischen Journalsiten die USA aus dem geschichtlichen Blickpunkt und der Erfahrung eines Europaers zu beurteilen ist sagenhaft und zugleich mangelnd an Intelligenz.

Warum versuchen deutsche Journalisten nicht die Laender des asiatischen, des afrikanischen und des australischen Kontinents mit denselben Massstaeben und in derselben Frequenz zu messen?

Die Antworten sind sehr einfach:

1. Die anderen Kontinente haben nie so einen Einfluss auf die deutsche Zukunft wie wir, in den USA, nach den zwei verlorenen Weltkriegen gehabt.

2.Machen sie den Fehler die amerikanische geschichtliche und politische Denkungsweise der europaeischen gleichzusetzen, da wir ausser allen anderen Rassen auch Einwanderer europaeischer Abstammung im Lande haben.

Es sind Fehler denen schon ein Adolf Hitler erlegen war, als er hoffte das die grosse Zahl der Menschen deutscher Abstammung in Amerika einen Krieg mit Deutschland verhindern koennten.

Jeder deutsche Einwanderer der nach Amerika kam merkte sogleich dass er nicht ein anderes europaeisches Land betrat sondern irgendwie eine andere Welt vor sich hatte.

Die Grosszuegigkeit der Amerikaner, ihre Liebe zum Judeo-christlichen Gott, ihre freundliche, nachbarschaftliche Hilfsbereitschaft und die Abwesenheit jeglichen Neides unter zumindest 80% der U.S. Bewohner laesst alle Aehnlicheiten mit typisch europaeischem Verhalten schwinden.

Mann kann dieses lange argumentieren und doch wieder kurz machen, indem man jedem Europaer empfiehlt die Geschichte der USA besser kennenzulernen (und nicht nur am TV oder aus Zeitschriften).

Dann duerfte selbst der grosste Zweifler bald davon ueberzeugt sein das ausser einer ererbten Kultur Europas aus dem 18. und 19. Jahrhundert alles andere, typisch amerikanische nicht die geringste Aehnlichkeit mit Europa hat. Das gilt ganz gleich fuer den Sozialismus, den Standesduenkel oder die komplizierten Umgangsformen Europas.

Es ist daher immer wieder aeusserst verwunderlich warum Europaer sich so der oberflaechlichen modernen Kultur Amerikas bereitwilligist in Sprache und Gebrauch unterwerfen, ohne auch nur das geringste Verstaendnis fuer die totale Verschiedenheit von Europa des Landes, der Leute und der Geschichte der USA entwickelt zu haben. So eine oberflaechliche Zuneigung der Europaeer zu Amerika muss zu tiefsten Enttaeuschungen bei ihnen fuehren.

Es war ein bekanntes Sprichwort in Deutschland fuer Jahrhunderte: "Unsere Besten verlassen das Land". Weil ich selbst Auswanderer war will ich mich becheidenerweise nicht dazuzaehlen.

Aber ich weiss nur eins, das sich mein Horizont fuer die Welt, das Weltall, sowie mein Verstaendnis fuer das Unrecht dem die Menschen meiner eignen Heimat im alten Ostdeutschland unterlagen um 1000% erweitert hat. Aber nicht nur das. Ich fand den Mut als Individuum, in Amerika, wie dem grosse Martin Luther folgend, alle falschen Vertraege und luegenhaften Abkommen der BRD wie die einstige Bannbulle des Pabstes gegen Luther ins Feuer zu werfen. Moegen andere der wirklich noch vorhandenen treudeutschen Menschen in Deutschland meinem Beispiel folgen um eine demokratische Wende in der BRD Aussenpolitik zu schaffen.

Vorlaufig unterscheided sich die heutige BRD in ihren Auffassungen ueber Freiheit, Berechtigung auf Heimatland und Selbstbestimmung sowie uber die USA wenig von der DDR unseligster Zeiten deutscher Geschichte.

[Pensive Elf]

Why should we be surprised? The moonbats stick together, it matters not the country. Pictures like this and the gallery from Stern use the same tactics that the Lefties used when they did their famous apology photo gallery after the election. If I remember correctly there was a comparison/contrast website where they showed "intelligent, cultured" Kerry supporters against the typical "redneck gun-totin' church goin'" Bush supporter.

Completely ignoring the fact that many professionals also supported Bush. At least in America we have the luxury of looking at those pictures and recognizing them for the sheer hypocrisy and propoganda that they are. Too bad, Germans don't have that luxury.

When the time comes that they really need us...and they will...all this anti-American bias will come back to haunt them.

[americanbychoice]

I'll be in Germany again in a few weeks. I always wanted to take some pictures of "Homeless, run down Buildings, Penner, sitting on Street corners injecting themselves with Police looking on, etc."
I will post them. I will probably win a prize since those pictures will show scenes that aren't possible in Germany. I will probably be accused of staging them.
Watch for Pictures.

[americanbychoice]

A heading may be: The Germany that doesn't exist?

[americanbychoice]

@ no name coward
Yours are so much better. They show so much more culture in the background and morally superior Uebermenschen walking past them and sneering.
Of course, since that doesn't exist in the German welfare state, you would be the first one to deny them?

[americanbychoice]

Uebrigens, was ist denn ein "pittoresker"?
Hast du das von Zwiebelfish uebersetzt bekommen?
Such a large brain, so much empty space.

[americanbychoice]

Uebrigens, was ist denn ein "pittoresker", hast du das von Zwiebelfish uebersetzt bekommen?
Such a large brain, so much empty space.

[Joe]

Americanbychoice,

How can that be in a social welfare state where there is social justice for all?

BTW Don't waste time repsonding to cowards. They are like little children.

[267]

Well, Mr Anonymous -- feel better now? You'd better run along -- the morning roll call in the hebephrenia ward seems to have come up short.

Getting back to the subject -- I'm simply gobsmacked there's a market for such pitifully obvious stuff. This sort of material is published and shown on television because there's an appetite for it, or at least a perceived appetite. What is the source for the German appetite for racial and ethnic hatred? And how is it rationalized by the 68ers and their fellow travellers?

[Joe]

267,

You note as I do how cowards have such small brains. If you want to know why or how there is a market for this, look no farther than our coward. I am sure Germany is infected with many just like him.

[PacRim Jim]

If an American magazine were to run disgusting pix of Germany, do you suppose they would be able to find any. German history seems to be devoid of objectionable incidents, doesn't it?

[Roy]

where is ray today?

[Sock Puppet of Doom]

Anonymous cowards are apperently to ignorant to know how to use a web form to even enter a fake name. All regular readers ought to ignore them. It is rare they have anything to add to a discussion. Responding to them feeds their juvenile egos. Please do not react to or even notice them.

[Ray D.]

The IP number of the person spamming our site is: 84.176.98.214

[jane m]

Actually, the German notion that all Bush supporters are poor and ignorant is amusing. Go to all the afluent suburbs in the red states and you'll find well-educated, conservative, prosperous citizens with very nice homes and practically no guns (except hunting rifles owned by avid hunters) who vote Republican in the majority. Many of them in their youth were Democrats but got over that silliness when they started to build families.

[triticale]

There is in the United States a market for photo essays about Germany, or any other country. The magazine is National Geographic, and I have never seen an attempt in that magazine to make the people of any country look bad.

As I mentioned in my post tracked back from the previous photo gallery, I could easily provide picture opportunities from right around me which contrast quite nicely with the negative stereotypes being presented. Altho my neighborhood is more black than anything else there are white homeowners a generation older and a generation younger than myself, mixed race couples, gay couples, a Hispanic from the American Southwest, etc. Among the local business owners are Sikh and Hmong immigrants. Politics range from left moonbat to right wingnut, but mostly it doesn't come up between us. Too bad there doesn't seem to be a market for such a photo essay.

[Del Hoeft]

Gun shop Angie looks like yer good Pennsylvania Dutch. Yoos don't mess with Angie. Go girl.

I see this cup half full. German geldings have a guilty fascination with reckless American vigour. There is something almost Wagnerian about Angie. Give her braids a spear and cinnemon rolls and you'd have an archetype every thickbrow (errr), that is highbrow German could relate to.

[Irena Mitzka]

I saw the article and also thought : Oh, not again, not again another America journalist / correspondent ( who BTW LOVES America) goes around traveling on GEZ expenses to propagate bullshit and then does his masterwork of black/white photographs.
For the houndreth time.
Ho hum, how boring.
What a lot of crap fotos.
Anybody can do black / white fotos.
You can do a series on toenails and it looks impressive in b/w.

Gunshop-owners, ghetto dwellers and barbers of America , kick these guys in the ass when they come a camera toting.

@Irena Mitzka

"Gunshop-owners, ghetto dwellers and barbers of America , kick these guys in the ass when they come a camera toting."

I suggest next time you see a gunshop-owner, ghetto dweller or barber, go right up to him and tell him: "Listen, in case a German photographer comes along, please hide your ugly face. Pictures of you shed a bad light on America. "

[fuchur]

sorry, mine

[Sock Puppet of Doom]

84.176.98.214 is assigned to Deutsche Telekom AG

To report abuse you can use the following contact information.

person: Security Team
address: Deutsche Telekom AG
address: Germany
phone: +49 180 5334332
fax-no: +49 180 5334252
e-mail: abuse@t-ipnet.de

I assure you the type of post flooding that was attempted will get your internet access suspended if it's reported.

[Jan der echte]

Every time any german magazine publishes foto works about the US there is the same outcry here. I really do not get the point why those fotos should be anti-american, biased or whatever you call it. Could you show me the foto exhibition about America you would like to see?

[americanbychoice]

@ Ray D.
Could you please get the ip for Amihasser and Zyme and post them here?
I will definately post a complaint.. In the US, racial overtones are not permitted. "Elektroschocks in Bautzen", name calling etc. is definately out of bounds and I would like to see these individuals banned. I always wondered, could they Zyme, Amihasser and "no name coward" be the same?

[Hector]

Jan,
What bothers us is that the only types of photos essays we see in German media (or university exhibits) seems to be focused on showing only one of two things: a) the ugliest images of America they can find or b) images which reinforce the cliches German media and intelligentsia like to propogate about our country. In short, it bothers us that German people are being fed a stream of ugly caricatures of us while the larger truth is ignored of hidden. Wouldn't it bother you if our roles were reversed?

Ray et al,
I was just offered a job back in Germany and am not sure if I'll take it. I enjoyed many years thers before but I'm afraid things have changed to much for an "Ami" to have a good life there. We'll see.

I think Gun Shop Angie is kind of cute, actually. And it's almost certain that she's not a whiner...

[Cousin Dave]

Oops, that previous snarkily superfluous comment was brought to you by Cousin Dave (why doensn't stupid MIE fill in the blanks anymore?).

[Irena Mitzka]

@ Hector

If you please,
what kind of job ?

[267]

"@ Ray D.
Could you please get the ip for Amihasser and Zyme and post them here?
I will definately post a complaint.. In the US, racial overtones are not permitted. "Elektroschocks in Bautzen", name calling etc. is definately out of bounds and I would like to see these individuals banned. I always wondered, could they Zyme, Amihasser and "no name coward" be the same?"

Let's not go there, please? And there's not a chance those are all the same person. Your post notwithstanding, obnoxious, "racially overtone[d]" speech certainly is permitted in the US (apart from such blighted neighborhoods as universities, where no freedom is really safe). Trying to get people banned for spamming or name-calling is one thing, but informing on people like Zyme simply because you don't like their opinions is beyond obnoxious. Besides, strict limits on speech make it much more difficult to "spot the idiots".

[Sock Puppet of Doom]

The object is not to limit speech it is to go after the crapflooders. I am adult enough to be able to tolerate those with different opinions as I as long as they do the same for me. Freedom to speak to each other solves many problems if we are open minded and well grounded. Weblogs/Blogs are all about freedon to speak are they not?

[d00d]

I couldn't read the article accompanying the photos, but I don't see what everybody's freaking out about on these pictures. I thought the audio track was a bit wierd and didn't match the photos, but I guess I'll chalk that up to 'art' or some sort of the usual political statement associated douchebag-ness.
These pics weren't that bad at all, and are realistic photos of some "in the middle of no where" places in America.

I think the anti-US antenna was a little too fine tuned on this post.

[Caroline]

My main complaint is that the images suck. The composition is terrible. The photographer should have spent a little more time studying the brilliant Cartier-Bresson and his amazing book:

America in Passing

out of print now but still available in large urban used bookstores and over the internet. Images of poverty, quirkiness, soulless corporatism, American stereotypes (football as religion), even the mandatory American flag photo (the famous photo of the old woman on Cape Cod with the flag draped around her neck). But he never loses sight of his subjects' humanity and even Americans can recognize themselves in both their beauty and ugliness but that's because HCB was a real photographer. Is this guy well known in Germany or something? I mean look at that photo you're showing - A woman in a flannel shirt awkwardly posing holding up a shotgun. That photo sucks. It's high school yearbook quality. If someone wants to mock America I'd appreciate it if they at least showed a bit of skill in doing so.

[Ray D.]

@ d00d:

Where did I write it was "anti-American?"

---Ray D.

[Hector]

@Irena,
Its a position with what the SPD would call a "blood sucking locust" US firm. I'm waiting to see the results of the election before I make a decision.

[steven]

Cartier Bresson is god.
Here are some photos from the book:

http://www.magnumphotos.com/c/htm/FramerT_MAG.aspx?Stat=Portfolio_DocThumb&V=CDocT&E=2TYRYD1DQW9D&DT=ALB

And the book is still available

http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/0500279144/www.magnumphot-21/202-2997796-9381431

Robert Frank "The Americans" is also a still available and great publication on that subject

[Caroline]

Steven: "Cartier Bresson is god."

I think there is some truth in that statement Steven. Cartier-Bresson is a Zen master. That means when he photographs, his ego is absent (being so totally in the moment as he was requires the absence of ego by definition). Where ego is completely absent, God (however one defines that) is present. So it would perhaps be correct to say that in some sense, Cartier-Bresson, when he photographs, is God! (His personal life may be a different story).

Anyone who has ever tried taking black and white photographs with a manual camera, as HCB did, will immediately recognize his brilliance. The volume of his work belies "luck" and "accident"

Another photographer that matches Cartier-Bresson in brilliance is Sebastiao Salgado. Brings tears to the eyes. And not just because of the subject matter. Rather, because, like HCB, he is a true Zen master.

My beef with this photographer, is that his ego is so obviously involved. People see black and white and think it is "artsy" and beautiful. But I can assure you that this photographer is a "poseur". A few of the shots are decent. But the composition is horrendous in too many.

[Caroline]

Steven - I just followed your link to the HCB "America in Passing" book. The whole bloody book is there! Bona fide link...

America in Passing

[d00d]

@ Ray,

Well, one poster is "starting to" be "anti-German". Perhaps his antenna's a little too finely tuned.