• Anonymous
• August 07, 1968
• Miami, Fl
• To depict police escorting a man injured during a riot
• It is an original source of information about the topic
• Yes, biggest news corporations rely on AP, even though the identity of photographer is unknown.
• How much less publicity did the Miami Riot get in 1968 compared to the Chicago Riot?

I would try to obtain recordings of news broadcast of that time. I would compare how much attention was given to the race riot in Miami, where African-American community protested the poverty and racism at home Vs. the Chicago Riot that was initiated by the white majority protesting war in Vietnam. One of the 3 TV networks – ABC, CBS, NBC, must still have records that I could use. They might be willing to share them for educational purposes; not for the profit-seeking purposes. I would also need to do extensive research about each riot and identify who were the protesters/rioters, what were they protesting, what kind of damage did the rioting cause in each respective city, did people get hurt, and whether the protests were answered. News articles by major publications from that time might help me answers these questions. Another important piece of information to research is the platform of the Republican and Democratic Conventions, as well as the reactions of all the politicians who witnessed the riots happening during the Conventions.

Participants in a Students for a Democratic Society-sponsored demonstration display signs protesting the general election as a “hoax” and calling for peace in Vietnam. The demonstration was staged on the steps of the Iowa capitol building after a three-mile march under police supervision

Who created the artifact?
Anonymous but it is credited to Bettmann/Corbis / AP Images

When was the artifact created?
November 5th, 1968

Where was it created?
Des Moines, IA; at an SDS demonstration at the Iowa capital building.

Why was the document created?
To document the events that were taken place within the college community during the election year of 1968.

Why is the document a primary source?
This photograph is a primary source because it has never been manipulated (sans AP images watermark) or altered since it was captured in ’68.

How trustworthy is the source?
Very. The AP images archive is a very credible source for images.

What other questions might you ask of the source in order to better understand what it reveals about the events of 1968?
In regards to this specific event, I would ask the photographer who he spoke to at the event, and why they decide to attend. I would like to know what the overall vibe and feeling was like within the crowd that day. Also, the difference between demonstrations/protests he had attended that year that took place prior to the election as opposed to post-election.

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The major themes of the culture conflicts in 1968 are all evident in this photograph. This is a great location and time to help construct an argument about these conflicts. Along with this photograph; in order to present a more balanced view of this event, I would have to see more photographs that were taken at this very event. Ideally it would be best to gather photographs from a variety of sources, that way I can be safe in assuming I’m not getting images that are biased to a specific cause.

Along with collecting photographs from the event; written or recorded interviews from demonstration attendees would help with putting a voice to the people in the photographs. It would assist in giving a more through analysis of who was at the demonstration and why. Interviews would be nice, but video of the demonstration would be best. By seeing the event in real time, you will be able to get an unbiased view of the event from a specific vantage point. This would help in making you feel as if you were actual attendee. Any press release from the SDS or varying collegiate organizations in response to the elections, would prove vital in identifying the purpose and message they were trying to give the country with organizing the demonstration.

To gather all of these sources I would first attempt to find as many items through the Baruch Library database. Further research can be done at various databases and archives that do not fall under Baruchs database; as well as other libraries in the area.

In order to construct a well rounded argument, I would have to read further into the SDS and other demonstrations they held that year. Reading about the specific movements that are mentioned in the signage present in the photograph would also prove helpful in the arguments construction.

Demonstrators from the National Women’s Liberation Movement picket the 1968 Miss America Pageant. (Copyright Bettmann/Corbis / AP Images)

• After checking out the database’s citation, the says that the Photographer is Anonymous. I’m assuming that means that the photographer is uncredited as they bought the picture from an amateur photographer.
• Saturday, September 07, 1968
• Atlantic City
• The Miss America pageant became a target of protests, as feminist and civil rights activist fought against what they saw as a show that was degrading to women. In 1968, 400 women from the New York Radical Women protested the event on the Atlantic City boardwalk by crowning a live sheep Miss America. They also symbolically trashed a number of feminine products such as fake eyelashes, make up and bras.
• The photograph is a primary source because the AP photos, though anonymous, are taken by their own photographers and kept in their archives. It’s been digitized for the website, but because it’s the Associated Press, it’s a reliable news wire and it is trusted to have a copy in it’s own physical archives.
• The Associated Press has been around since the mid-1800s, and is the most widely (if not only) news-wire used in most journalistic broadcasts and publications. Its style book is taught at Baruch College’s Copy Editing course, and all articles in the department as well as campus publications such as Dollars and Sense and The Ticker are written in AP Style. AP Image, as an offshoot of the Associated Press, has gained its credibility through its age, it’s influence and it’s newsworthiness.
• I would ask to see the physical copy of the photograph, and I would like to see if I could learn more about who was responsible for taking the photo and why they were kept anonymous. As mentioned in an earlier reading, curating history is not just looking into what’s been recorded, but what’s been left out of history.

In the context of the 1968 election, I would do background information on the history of this particular women’s organization, the National Women’s Liberation Movement. With the creation of the National Organization for Women (NOW) I would like to see if the two organizations ever clashed or if they worked together.

Regarding the protests, I would go back and see how it was covered in the news – were the demonstrator villainized or supported by the media? How did the presidential candidates handle the movement – did they lump it together with the civil rights and youth movements at the time, or was it its own separate issue?

Also, after the candidates made their stance, was there any policies passed to reflect their views, or was the issue pushed aside until the next administration? Did the conflict cause controversy? Were the candidates comfortable or uncomfortable talking about the women’s liberation movement?

For the photograph, I would truly like to know why the photographer is Anonymous. Being such a highly credible publication, the Associated Press is not one to just find a photo, shrug its shoulders and say, “Guess we’ll just use this one.” The people in charge at the time knew the photographer and chose not to credit them (or the photographer did not want to receive credit) – why was this? Was the conflict between women’s liberation and the mainstream media too tense at the time?

The silence speaks volumes in this case, and while the conflict of the women’s liberation movement most likely had less supporters than fans, I would like to get a better understanding of the ripple effects of protests like the one illustrated at the Atlantic City boardwalk.