Stories of change. beyond the Arab Spring, World Press Photo, Paperback
Stories of change
The ''Arab Spring'' is among the most thoroughly photographed<br />events in recent history. People in the streets using their mobile<br />phones to register incidents they were eyewitness to, local journalists<br />as well as camera crews and freelance photographers dispatched by<br />international media recording the developments from day to day. Our<br />perception of the ''Arab Spring'' is marked by dramatic images of key<br />moments during the uprisings. Demonstrators taking over Tahrir<br />Square in Cairo and engaging in violent clashes with the security<br />forces and supporters of President Mubarak; the storming of Colonel<br />Gaddafi's compound in Tripoli, Libya, by rebels and the capture of the<br />leader himself weeks later. Major changes in the power relations have<br />taken place since then: in Egypt and Tunisia, the resignation of the<br />country's president, and in Libya, the fall of the leader and the first<br />free elections in 60 years. In other countries, protests have not led to<br />a revolution, but they are facing challenges from local issues and from<br />the effects of the global economic crisis. How well do we know the<br />region beyond the headlines though? What has been the impact of the<br />events on people's everyday lives? Many of the issues that fuelled the<br />uprisings remain unresolved: a high level of youth unemployment, the<br />rising cost of living, women's rights etc. What is really going on in the<br />homes and in the streets of the cities in the region? What do people<br />worry or dream about? Stories of Change challenges our perceptions<br />of the region and brings to the foreground a local perspective in<br />reporting. Through stories produced exclusively for this book, and<br />shown here for the first time, we are offered an insider view into the<br />lives of people in a region that rarely has left news headlines, but that<br />only few of us know beyond the one-dimensional headline news<br />images flashed on our screens.<br />Stories of Change celebrates authenticity in visual storytelling,<br />showing us North Africa through the eyes of a group of<br />photojournalists from the region. They are all top alumni of a series<br />of workshops conducted in 2012 and 2013 by World Press Photo for<br />photographers from five participating countries: Morocco, Algeria,<br />Tunisia, Libya and Egypt.<br />Stories of Change contains a visual<br />chronology of the most memorable<br />moments of the Arab Spring, compiled<br />from the visual reporting in the<br />international media of the unfolding<br />events at the time. The main focus lies<br />in the visual storytelling by the young<br />talent in photographic reporting,<br />bringing into perspective and adding<br />depth and nuance to the reporting<br />about North Africa. The book contains<br />over 200 images on 312 pages, and is<br />complemented by articles by prominent<br />writers in the region about the North<br />African societies and cultures, and with<br />a foreword by Arabist and former<br />diplomat Petra Stienen discussing<br />the mythology of the Arab Spring and<br />how accurate our perceptions about the<br />region are or aren't. Accompanying<br />Stories of Change, a collection of<br />multimedia stories will be launched<br />online.<br />
