Street execution of a viet cong prisoner, saigon, 1968

The image depicts actual conditions of warfare during the Tet Offensive, when Saigon was under martial law: civilians were being killed (e.g., by the prisoner before he was captured), enemies were not always in uniform, and the street battles required close, vicious fighting. Yet even when this contextualization was provided, the image of a bound prisoner being summarily executed on a city street also evoked strong emotional reactions that encompassed justification of the war itself. The image depicts actual conditions of warfare during the Tet Offensive, when Saigon was under martial law: civilians were being killed (e.g., by the prisoner before he was captured), enemies were not always in uniform, and the street battles required close, vicious fighting. Iconic photographs challenge conventional wisdom about the meaning of any photograph. That meaning often cannot be reduced to the simple facts of the case at hand or relegated to the photographer’s intention or understanding.