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Photography has changed the world in the last 170 years, bringing to you images from places
and people that you might never see for yourself.
It helps us bridge cultural divides, and shows us the wonder of the world we live in.
Yet sometimes photographs bring us images of unimaginable horror, or become the source
of seismic change.
Hello and welcome to another episode of The Infographics Show- today we're taking a look
at the most shocking photographs ever taken.
15.
Spanish Flu
The spanish flu struck in January of 1918 and was responsible for infecting 500 million
people around the world, killing between 50 to 100 million of them or 3-5% of the world's
population.
It is without a doubt one of the deadliest natural disasters in human history- yet the
flu itself was not any more aggressive than the flu today, but with the consequences of
World War I leading to massive malnourishment, overcrowded hospitals and poor hygiene, it
weakened the immune system sufficiently for other illnesses to kill.
This photo, taken at a baseball game, looks like a screenshot from an apocalyptic Hollywood
film, with everyone, including the audience, wearing surgical masks for fear of infection.
14.
Crying Hitler Youth Child
Hitler promised Germany a glorious future, to include a Third Reich that would last for
a thousand years.
Yet in just a few short years he led Germany from economic and industrial powerhouse to
absolute ruin.
With an army of furious Soviets perpetrating massive atrocities out of revenge across the
German countryside, this photo of a 16 year old boy soldier weeping a day before Germany's
surrender shows the terror and desperation of the German people at the end of World War
II.
13.
Berlin Wall Rescue: Shortly after the end of World War II, the
Soviets erected the Berlin Wall, separating the East Berlin they controlled from the West
Berlin controlled by America and its allies.
Taking everyone, to include the residents of Berlin by surprise, the erection of the
wall separated families, and in this photo we can see an East German soldier risking
imprisonment or worse by allowing a child to cross so as to be reunited with his family.
Small moments of compassion like this were pinpricks of light in the darkness that befell
those caught on the wrong side of Stalin's Wall.
12.
William Saunder's Staged Execution
Traveling to China in 1860 as an engineer, British photographer William Saunder quickly
returned and went about documenting daily life in China.
Though his photographs are celebrated today as glimpses of life into 19th century China,
Saunders' work has drawn criticism and allegations of racism for falsely portraying the Chinese
as primitive and brutal.
This photograph shows a fake execution, meant to stir up public anger back home in Britain
and to encourage the British military to invade the nation and 'civilize' it.
11.
Mongolian Woman Locked In Box
Published in National Geographic in 1922, this photograph shows a common punishment
in early 20th century Mongolia.
Known as immurement, the practice is thought to be invented by the Romans and used against
virgins who broke their oaths of chastity.
As spilling the blood of a virgin was unlawful, the women were instead locked into boxes and
left until they starved to death.
With the spread of the Roman empire the practice became popular across the world, and remained
a punishment specifically for women for centuries.
10.
The Holodomor A man-made famine and one of the worst in
history, the Holodomor struck Ukraine in 1932 and killed millions.
Though warned years in advance of a pending famine, Ukrainian and Soviet officials did
nothing to prevent it.
Though Russia has always maintained that the famine was result of the Soviet industrial
revolution, many believe that it was in fact a calculated move by Stalin to crush a Ukrainian
independence movement before it got started.
This is a photo of Kharkiv in 1933, with corpses littering the street as passers by simply
go about their day.
9.
Shanghai Baby In 1937 the Japanese began their conquest
of China, launching a crushing offensive against a mostly peasant army.
Overwhelmed and outmatched by Japan's superior military, there was little China could do
to defend itself and millions died as a result of the fighting.
In this photo we see the aftermath of a Japanese bombing attack on a train station where women
and children were being sheltered.
The child miraculously survived, though badly burned.
8.
Concentration Camp Mass Grave
Taken at the Bergen-Belsen camp after its liberation, this photo shows just some of
the 50,000 killed by the Nazis in their gas chambers.
Standing amidst the bodies is camp doctor Fritz Klein, who was responsible for deciding
who would be sent to the gas chamber and who would be pressed into slave labor instead.
It was later discovered that Bergen-Belsen was the camp where Anne Frank met her end.
7.
The Nagasaki Brothers
Taken just after the atomic bombing of Nagasaki, this photo shows a young child carrying his
dead younger brother.
The child carried his dead brother to a crematorium and watched him burn, refusing to cry as he
honored his fallen younger brother.
Between 39,000 and 80,000 were killed in the Nagasaki atomic bombing, and though the United
States has for decades argued that the bombings were necessary to prevent a greater loss of
life from a military invasion, it is widely believed that Japan would have surrendered
soon anyways as it faced a massive Soviet invasion fleet preparing to attack.
6.
Starving African Child
Taken in 1993, this photo by Kevin Carter shows a starving Sudanese child just meters
from a food distribution center.
Per Carter, he heard a whimpering and walked into the bush where he found the starving
toddler after collapsing, and moments later a vulture landed waiting for its potential
meal.
Instead of helping, Carter watched for 20 minutes hoping the vulture would open its
wings and present a more powerful image.
When it didn't, he scared the vulture away and watched the child finally make it to the
aid center.
Though the photograph won a pulitzer prize, Carter faced severe backlash over what many
have seen as massive exploitation and sheer cruelty on his behalf.
5.
Serb Soldier Kicks Muslim Woman
Taken during the Bosnian war in 1992 by American photographer Ron Haviv, this photo shows a
Serb soldier kicking an injured Muslim Woman as she lay dying.
Warned not to document any of the killing by the Tigers, a nationalist Serb militia,
Haviv was determined to document the reality he saw every day and took a chance, getting
this shot.
The photo was published a week later and Haviv was put on a hit list by Zeljko Raznatovic,
leader of the Tigers.
4.
Death of Neda
On June 20th, 2009, 26 year old Neda Aghan-Soltan stepped out of her car on a Tehran street
near were Iranians massed in protest of what was seen as a farcical re-election of President
Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.
Ahmadinejad had made it illegal to to join the demonstrations, and moments after stepping
out of her car Neda was shot in the chest by a pro-government sniper.
The still taken from a cell phone video quickly went viral and was even seen within hours
by President Barack Obama.
This photograph was quickly spread across Iran and printed onto banners, posters and
protest signs, further inflaming the ongoing protests.
3.
Iraqi Girl At Checkpoint
Taken in 2005, this photo shows an Iraqi girl pulled from her vehicle just outside an American
military checkpoint.
After her parents had not slowed their vehicle on approach to the checkpoint, the American
soldiers manning the checkpoint opened fire, fearful it may have been a suicide attack.
The girl's parents were instantly killed, and the girl pulled from the vehicle and taken
to a US field hospital.
The photograph ignited a firestorm around the world, but for US forces and the Iraqi
civilians it highlighted several cultural misconceptions that directly led to increased
tensions at military checkpoints, including the difference between hand and arm gestures
that mean “stop” and “go”, which some believe led directly to the girl's parents
speeding up to the checkpoint.
2.
Abuse At Abu Ghraib
Taken at the infamous Abu Ghraib prison facility, the photo shows US servicemen using military
dogs to intimidate and frighten a naked inmate.
Serving as a facility to house captured terrorists and insurgents, late in 2003 a trove of photos
taken by US guards at the prison shocked the world as it showed American soldiers humiliating
and abusing the prisoners.
The subsequent investigation would lead to the imprisonment and dishonorable discharge
of all of the major perpetrators, and reprimands of senior officials who may have known the
abuse was taking place which effectively ended their military careers.
The scandal also prompted a top-to-bottom initiative by the Pentagon and mandatory training
for all servicemen assigned prison duties in basic human rights.
1.
Iranian Firing Squad
On August 27th, 1979, 11 men accused of being counterrevolutionaries were executed in a
dirt field at Sanandaj Airport in Iran.
With foreign press banned by Ayatullah Ruhollah Khomeini, the job of documenting the violence
within Iran was left to its domestic press which was heavily censored.
Iranian photographer Jahangir Razmi attended the execution of the 11 men and snapped this
and a series of other photos, which were posted anonymously on the front page of the Iranian
daily Ettela'at.
Members of the Islamic Revolutionary Council quickly descended on the paper's office and
demanded the photographer's name, though the paper's editor refused.
Days later the photo was picked up internationally and Razmi, fearful for his life, became the
only anonymous winner in history of the Pulitzer Prize.
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What's the most powerful photograph you've ever seen?
Want to see more of the world's most shocking photos?
Let us know in the comments.
Also, be sure to check out our other video What Makes Black Ops The World’s Most Dangerous
Soldiers?.
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