The Wall Street Journal
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB120354600035281041.html?mod=world_news_featured_articles
On February 21, 2008, the WSJ published an article about the drug problems in China. The illegal ingredient, raw heparin, is manufactured in Yuanlou and is a key ingredient in a blood-thinning medicine under suspicion in recent deaths. The article was available in both online and print versions both front page stories. The article itself was decent in terms of information and statistical data. However, the photos in print are disappointing. The first photo is not even an inch by inch and shows simply a bowl of the ingredient on display. Then turning to page A14, and you have two other visuals which include a snapshot of the facility that manufactures the drug component along with a Chinese man involved in the process line. The chart included with statistical data is a very well representation and far surpasses the photos. I know black and white photos can only tell so much but I would have thought there would be a few more such as people waiting in line to receive the drug or any families out of house and home due to drug dependency.
The online version is much better in terms of visual since color is a visual stimulant. There is a slide show of about 16 photos that range from the beginning of the process including workers and examples of the finished product. My favorite three photos are: a vat of pig intestines, the flattening of the intestines and a man heating up the fire to cook them. The three photos are similar in terms of purpose but they are so volatile representing the cruel truth overseas that he pulls you into the story. I would have, as stated above, included pictures of people dependent on the drug as well as pictures of people who have taken the drug and have had harmful side effects even those who have died. The pictures do not do much for the story other than show the photographer got the nut graf in a few shots. This story could have gone so much farther if the photos told more.
