Urtė Alksninytė just finished her BA studies in Public Communication at Vytautas Magnus University, Lithuania, with a quick stop in Foreign reporting at University of Helsinki, Finland.
With her final thesis Visual Testimonies of the Pandemic Crisis: Reflections of Photojournalists in June 2021, Urtė interviewed top Lithuanian photojournalists working in this humanitarian crisis, analyzing their motives of choosing pandemic-themed work, the main challenges, and the value they’ve brought to society with their photographs.
Currently working with cultural communication and as a freelance journalist, fixer. She describes herself as a scout, with a strong interest in crisis communication.
Texts:
„Mental Health of journalists is key to cope the crises in journalism“
An Interview with psychologist Veronica De Filippis on factors of sane working environments by Melania Fantastico, Urtė Alksninytė and Goshe Nikolov.
In light of the challenges ahead, strong independent journalism is more important than ever before. We need resilience!
Please read the entire text here.
„The price of COVID-19 photographs“
The way we understand the ongoing pandemic is mostly shaped by the media, but in times of directly invisible unrest, a special role is played by photojournalists. Supporting health communication with images facilitates people’s attention, makes it easier to remember, identify with and understand the information presented. Therefore, photography testifying dangers and challenges of the current crisis, can expand or even strengthen the narrative of the pandemic. As we look at the pictures reflecting the stories hit by the effects of the pandemic, we shouldn’t forget the real cost of visiting the backstage of this humanitarian crisis and reporting on its challenges. What effort does this require from photojournalists themselves?
Please read the entire text here.