Venkaiah Naidu said that in an era of misinformation through social media, photojournalism is a breath of fresh air.
Hyderabad: “Photographs have the power to influence and end wars. Photojournalism does not just cover events, it stands for democracy,” said former vice‑president of India M. Venkaiah Naidu.
He was speaking at the Photojournalists 2025 Awards organised by the Telangana Photojournalists Association at the Telangana Media Academy in Nampally on Sunday, along with former minister Ponnala Laxmaiah and Telangana Media Academy chairman K. Sreenivas Reddy.
Venkaiah Naidu said that in an era of misinformation through social media, photojournalism is a breath of fresh air. “Photography has a strong power. We have seen a number of wars, such as the Ukraine‑Russia war, where photographs played a key role in influencing people,” he said.
He remarked: “A senior journalist once said that a single newspaper is equivalent to an army of 10,000 soldiers. To that army, a photographer is like an AK‑47 weapon.”
Laxmaiah said that a photojournalist strives for a good photograph and goes to extreme measures to capture “a perfect shot”. Later, awards were handed over to photojournalists for their work.
