Obama Steals a Glance in Reuters Photograph

Reuters photographer Jason Reed shot a picture that's is getting a lot of attention on Internet news sites:

First published yesterday afternoon, Reed's photo soon appeared at the top of the Drudge Report. This morning, it's the most-emailed photo on Yahoo! News.

Reed has about six years of experience shooting U.S. political photography for Reuters, and he's carrying on a long tradition of White House photographers who shoot funny pictures of presidents. So why did this picture make us feel queasy?

Perhaps because we first saw it on Drudge, who treated it this way:

Maybe President Obama was eying a young woman's butt, or maybe he was just caught taking an awkward step. Either way it looks lecherous, and Nicolas Sarkozy's conspiratorial grin doesn't help matters.

This would be a much easier picture if it showed Bill Clinton or Gov. Mark Sanford, to name just two male politicians known for their wandering eyes. So far, Obama has no such reputation. Even his detractors consider him a family man. Which makes things complicated. This photograph is connecting strongly with viewers even though it runs counter to what they already know about Obama.

Or does it? We can't separate this picture from the ugly history of racists portraying black men as sexually dangerous. Obama's opponents tried to exploit this stereotype during the 2008 presidential campaign (as noted here and here by Michael Shaw on BAGNewsNotes). This humor in this political photograph is nearly smothered by racial baggage.

Despite this, we bet Obama himself would laugh at the picture.

Updates:

• ABC News has a video showing the moment this picture was shot. Thanks to commenter Kais for spotting it.
• Gawker Zapruders the ABC video.
• Who is the woman in the photo? Reuters identifies her as Mayora Tavares, a junior delegate to Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva. A few news sources, including the Financial Times, say she is 16 years old. The official UNICEF J8 site lists a junior delegate from Brazil as Mayara Tavares, age 17. A short biography of her is in a PDF file here.
• From our archive: Reuters Publishes Embarrassing John McCain Photo.

MSNBC also has a video:

Comments

[Mike]

This kind of split second picture is misleading. We really should see the video of this to know the situation. Every photographer here knows that the picture can lie!
So this images does nothing but suggest The President is naughty. When maybe he was turning his head after talking with the woman or with someone out of the shot. It also looks like he is in mid motion. When humans step down or walk, we look pretty strange sometimes and the camera can catch us doing things that, in a particular context, can mislead.
I think this photo belongs in the editing trash can and it is offensive and potentially racist.

[Rosh - New media photographer]

Having been a photographer following presidents for the media, I have a library full of images that make a presidents, candidates, many famous and non-famous people who I've photographed look bad.

I believe displaying this image is in poor taste - Media using this image displays the character of the editors and publishers more than the President (excluding PDN for sharing this example). I didn't think of a racist angle until pointed out.

Rosh
@newmediaphoto

[Bob]

I certainly agree that photos can lie, but I believe throwing the 'race card' in there is totally irrelevant. Men of all races are known to check out attractive women, even inadvertently. The fact that we are looking at man taking an awkward step while simultaneously looking in the direction of a woman's back side (whether intentional or not) should be reason to chuckle. It is a funny photograph. But when Drudge perverts it and others make racist remarks, the innocent humor of the photo is gone. Whether the photo SHOULD have been published or not is one question - but how it was interpreted is, at this point, much more relevant.

[Oskar]

You are being completely ridiculous.

PDN is pushing something that should not be pushed.

[Darron Mark]

WOW... Straight in with the racism card. I wouldn't have imagined this had anything to do with race, and I would have struggled to have put the two together in this instance. All it does is show that the President of the largest [current] super-power is human (or at least a male of the species). I'd have looked..!

At least Obama's glance looks fleeting, not like Nicolas Sarkozy's stand and stare approach. Any and all pictures are open to interpritation, and adding a race element to it is less to do with the context of the image, but that of an editorial team, or comment writers own misconceptions.

Poor form on those who choose to make this is a racially motivated image, you should be ashamed.

The only decent thing the American population has done in decades, voting in a 'normal' guy who has some sense of world events and is brave enough to reverse some of the wrongs that Bush Administration bullied into action.

Makes me proud to be an... Oh... Sorry, I'm British.

[ObamaFan]

As with all things Obama, what Drudge and the mindless Rethuglicans think will be a negative against him will turn out to be positive. I admire everything the man has done, and checking out a hot ass is certainly better than "taking a hike on the Appalachian Trail" or quitting your job mid-term.

[JGMN]

I saw the video this morning. I am pretty conservative, and not a fan of Obama's policies. he video is clear that he was not stealing a glance. I am actually really suprised this was released. Funny pic though and I am sure he would laugh at it.

[Brock Meeks]

There's nothing to debate or wring one's hands over here. The only debate would come if the Prez HADN'T turn his head. I mean, c'mon.

[DB]

I haven't seen the video, but I think it's likely that he may not have been looking at her at all. He could have been looking at something out of the frame. Remember the Elian Gonzales photo with the swat cop? It looked like he was pointing his gun at the boy but it was an optical illusion. People who were there said his gun was pointed to the side. It could be the same thing here.

[Kais]

http://abcnews.go.com/Video/playerIndex?id=8049121

Nothing to see here, move along.

[Aaron]

It really sickens me to watch everyone in the mainstream media run to Obama's defense in this situation. Had it been Bush or any other Republican for that matter no such protests would be heard. Beyond that, Obama, or anyone else for that matter, doesn't require such a vigorous defense on this issue. Coming in with the race card so quickly is adsurd, lots of guys like asses.

[TheBJF]

It saddens me that people are so desperate to find mud that will stick to this guy that they are reaching as far as to accuse him of checking out an ass? It's a nice ass! Jesus would probably give it a second glance for fuck sake! He is a man and men look at women. All the time. That doesn't signify anything other than he is human, which is the reason people love Obama in the first place. He is Willing to BE human. I will go as far as to say I hope he was looking.

[Daryl Lang]

I want to share a really excellent response we got from a follower on Twitter, where we asked, "Is this Reuters photo of Obama funny, or racist?"

@abdulsmith responds: "@pdnonline the attention we give to it will probably decide..."

[Furniture]

I am totaly agree with Aaron, I do not know why I can no stop watching a nice ladies, some time I tried to stop myself from watching a nice Ass!! but I can not.

[Furniture]

We can not be 100% that he was watching the lady.

[eric f.]

@Aaron, the video is the proof that the photo was misleading, and if you know it exists, you must show it. If I see someone lying I will call them on it too.

the media did a fine job here, for once...

[Mike]

Good catch DB!

Case closed.

http://abcnews.go.com/Video/playerIndex?id=8049121

[B]

To all of you that think this photo should not have been released, where were you when Jill Greenberg released the manipulated photos of John McCain, hmmm?

Probably emailing it to your friends laughing and posting it on your blogs with a readership of ZERO. IT IS A FUNNY PHOTO, AND THAT'S IT. I probably would have sneaked a glance myself!

[Mike]

The radical right responses to this are funny!

[Advertising Photographer Portland OR]

Hah that's pretty funny. It's so interesting how much freezing reality in an image can change the story.

I find it funny that people are arguing over this photo when he was really just in the middle or turning behind him to help another woman down a step. Just reminds people to get the whole story before you jump to conclusions.

[bholder]

You are so right Mike. But I say, if it will bring an end to world peace, then, HEY LOOK AT MINE!!

I just hope that there's more positive news to come out of the summit besides USA and France agree...

[meltrue]

It's just FUNNY....nothing wrong with that!!

[LL]

I'll never understand the American obtuseness with race. The writer just shows it once more. My advice is to take some lessons in simple logic...

[LL]

And i can't understand why someone(except partisans) say that the video dispels that notion since it only show the end of action and not the start. Call the TV station to put the whole video. Wonder why they cut it that way...

[Scott]

The President is a public figure & as such this photo has every right to be published...As for people interpreting racial or political meanings into the photo I just say to them "get a life" !!!

[tom]

The real question is, "What would Michelle say?"

[Barak Obama]

she did have a nice but