Amazon Tribe
The Not-So-Lost Tribe
by Mike KrumboltzJune 23, 2008 06:09:40 PM
Even in an age when cynical sleuths can hyper-analyze stories for truth and accuracy, the occasional hoax still slips through the cracks. Such was the case with a so-called "lost Amazon tribe."
A few months ago, mainstream news outlets (including, ahem, Yahoo!) reported that a photographer had found a lost tribe of warriors near the Brazilian-Peruvian border. Photos of the tribe backed up his claim.
As it turns out, the story is only half true. The men in the photo are members of a tribe, but it certainly ain't "lost." In fact, as the photographer, José Carlos Meirelles, recently explained, authorities have known about this particular tribe since 1910. The photographer and the agency that released the pictures wanted to make it seem like they were members of a lost tribe in order to call attention to the dangers the logging industry may have on the group.
The photographer recently came clean, and news outlets, perhaps embarrassed at having been taken for a ride, have been slow to pick up the story. Now, the word is starting to spread and articles in the Buzz are picking up steam. Expect a lot more brutal truth in the coming days.
source: http://buzz.yahoo.com/buzzlog/91536
I was one of the people who saw this and ran with it. I commented on how amazing it is that there are still people that have been untouched by time and civilization. As it turns out they have been touched by civilization and it was simply a ploy to make us angry at the logging industry. The photographer claims these people are endangered by the destruction of the forests. Apparently, it is more compelling if the people threatened have been untouched by both time and civilization instead of just time. If the loggers threaten their existence what difference does it make if they have had contact with the outside world or not? It does not seem necessary to lie about it, any point the photographer had hoped to make about these peoples plight has been lost in the lie and in the end, and they may be worse off.
1 comment:
I tend to be very distrusting of the media these days unless I can find corroboration at a least one or two other sources. Too many journalists have no ethics in pushing their personal agenda by manipulating the news.
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