Chris Hondros
Encyclopedia
Chris Hondros was an American Pulitzer Prize
-nominated war photographer.
to immigrant Greek
and German
parents who were child refugees after World War II
. He spent most of his childhood in Fayetteville, North Carolina
, where he graduated from Terry Sanford High School
in 1988.
Hondros studied English literature at North Carolina State University
where he also worked for the Technician
, the campus newspaper. After graduating from State in 1993, Hondros moved to Athens, Ohio
and earned a Master's degree at Ohio University
School of Visual Communications. He returned to Fayetteville in 1996 to begin a career with the The Fayetteville Observer and to be close to his father who died of cancer in 2000.
Hondros left his job at The Fayetteville Observer in 1998 to return to New York and concentrate on international reporting. From his base in New York, Hondros worked in most of the world's major conflict zones since the late 1990s, including Kosovo
, Angola
, Sierra Leone
, Afghanistan
, Kashmir
, the West Bank
, Iraq
, and Liberia
.
Following the September 11 attacks, Hondros took photos at ground zero. Hondros also followed Sen. John Kerry's presidential campaign
in 2004. His work included disasters such as Hurricane Katrina
and the 2010 Haiti earthquake
.
His work appeared as the covers of magazines such as Newsweek
and the Economist
, and on the front pages of The New York Times
, the Washington Post, and the Los Angeles Times
.
His photography was featured in the documentary film, "Liberia: A Fragile Peace." (2006)
On January 18, 2005, an Iraqi family was traveling in a car which failed to stop at a U.S. checkpoint in Tal Afar
. Thinking it was a suicide bomber, U.S. troops opened fire, killing both parents and injuring one of their five children sitting in the back seat. As a result of the worldwide interest in his case generated by Hondros's pictures, the boy was later flown to the United States for treatment in a Boston
hospital. Hondros won dozens of international awards for the images. One of his pictures of this tragedy is likely to become "one of the few photos from the Iraq war that could stand out in history" according to Liam Kennedy, a professor at University College Dublin.
In an interview, Hondros stated:
2003
2004
2005
2006
2007
2008
. Photojournalist Tim Hetherington
was killed in the attack, which wounded two other photographers. A source said that the group was traveling with rebel fighters. According to The New York Times
, Hondros died from his injuries as a result of severe brain trauma.
Pulitzer Prize
The Pulitzer Prize is a U.S. award for achievements in newspaper and online journalism, literature and musical composition. It was established by American publisher Joseph Pulitzer and is administered by Columbia University in New York City...
-nominated war photographer.
Biography
Chris Hondros was born in New York CityNew York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
to immigrant Greek
Greeks
The Greeks, also known as the Hellenes , are a nation and ethnic group native to Greece, Cyprus and neighboring regions. They also form a significant diaspora, with Greek communities established around the world....
and German
Germans
The Germans are a Germanic ethnic group native to Central Europe. The English term Germans has referred to the German-speaking population of the Holy Roman Empire since the Late Middle Ages....
parents who were child refugees after World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. He spent most of his childhood in Fayetteville, North Carolina
Fayetteville, North Carolina
Fayetteville is a city located in Cumberland County, North Carolina, United States. It is the county seat of Cumberland County, and is best known as the home of Fort Bragg, a U.S. Army post located northwest of the city....
, where he graduated from Terry Sanford High School
Terry Sanford High School
Terry Sanford High School is a public high school in Fayetteville, North Carolina, United States. It is named after Terry Sanford, who was a North Carolina state senator, Governor of North Carolina and a United States Senator...
in 1988.
Hondros studied English literature at North Carolina State University
North Carolina State University
North Carolina State University at Raleigh is a public, coeducational, extensive research university located in Raleigh, North Carolina, United States. Commonly known as NC State, the university is part of the University of North Carolina system and is a land, sea, and space grant institution...
where he also worked for the Technician
Technician (newspaper)
Technician is the student newspaper of North Carolina State University. Its first edition was published in 1920, and it has been published continuously since that date.-Overview:...
, the campus newspaper. After graduating from State in 1993, Hondros moved to Athens, Ohio
Athens, Ohio
Athens is the largest city in, and the county seat of, Athens County, Ohio, United States. It is located along the Hocking River in the southeastern part of Ohio. A historic college town, Athens is home to Ohio University and is the principal city of the Athens, Ohio Micropolitan Statistical Area. ...
and earned a Master's degree at Ohio University
Ohio University
Ohio University is a public university located in the Midwestern United States in Athens, Ohio, situated on an campus...
School of Visual Communications. He returned to Fayetteville in 1996 to begin a career with the The Fayetteville Observer and to be close to his father who died of cancer in 2000.
Hondros left his job at The Fayetteville Observer in 1998 to return to New York and concentrate on international reporting. From his base in New York, Hondros worked in most of the world's major conflict zones since the late 1990s, including Kosovo
Kosovo War
The term Kosovo War or Kosovo conflict was two sequential, and at times parallel, armed conflicts in Kosovo province, then part of FR Yugoslav Republic of Serbia; from early 1998 to 1999, there was an armed conflict initiated by the ethnic Albanian "Kosovo Liberation Army" , who sought independence...
, Angola
Angola
Angola, officially the Republic of Angola , is a country in south-central Africa bordered by Namibia on the south, the Democratic Republic of the Congo on the north, and Zambia on the east; its west coast is on the Atlantic Ocean with Luanda as its capital city...
, Sierra Leone
Sierra Leone
Sierra Leone , officially the Republic of Sierra Leone, is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Guinea to the north and east, Liberia to the southeast, and the Atlantic Ocean to the west and southwest. Sierra Leone covers a total area of and has an estimated population between 5.4 and 6.4...
, Afghanistan
War in Afghanistan (2001–present)
The War in Afghanistan began on October 7, 2001, as the armed forces of the United States of America, the United Kingdom, Australia, and the Afghan United Front launched Operation Enduring Freedom...
, Kashmir
Kashmir
Kashmir is the northwestern region of the Indian subcontinent. Until the mid-19th century, the term Kashmir geographically denoted only the valley between the Great Himalayas and the Pir Panjal mountain range...
, the West Bank
Israeli-Palestinian conflict
The Israeli–Palestinian conflict is the ongoing conflict between Israelis and Palestinians. The conflict is wide-ranging, and the term is also used in reference to the earlier phases of the same conflict, between Jewish and Zionist yishuv and the Arab population living in Palestine under Ottoman or...
, Iraq
2003 invasion of Iraq
The 2003 invasion of Iraq , was the start of the conflict known as the Iraq War, or Operation Iraqi Freedom, in which a combined force of troops from the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia and Poland invaded Iraq and toppled the regime of Saddam Hussein in 21 days of major combat operations...
, and Liberia
Liberia
Liberia , officially the Republic of Liberia, is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Sierra Leone on the west, Guinea on the north and Côte d'Ivoire on the east. Liberia's coastline is composed of mostly mangrove forests while the more sparsely populated inland consists of forests that open...
.
Following the September 11 attacks, Hondros took photos at ground zero. Hondros also followed Sen. John Kerry's presidential campaign
John Kerry presidential campaign, 2004
The Presidential Campaign of John Kerry, U.S. Senator from Massachusetts and the nominee of the Democratic Party challenged Republican incumbent President George W. Bush in the U.S. presidential election on November 2, 2004. Ultimately, Kerry conceded defeat in the race in a telephone call to Bush...
in 2004. His work included disasters such as Hurricane Katrina
Hurricane Katrina
Hurricane Katrina of the 2005 Atlantic hurricane season was a powerful Atlantic hurricane. It is the costliest natural disaster, as well as one of the five deadliest hurricanes, in the history of the United States. Among recorded Atlantic hurricanes, it was the sixth strongest overall...
and the 2010 Haiti earthquake
2010 Haiti earthquake
The 2010 Haiti earthquake was a catastrophic magnitude 7.0 Mw earthquake, with an epicentre near the town of Léogâne, approximately west of Port-au-Prince, Haiti's capital. The earthquake occurred at 16:53 local time on Tuesday, 12 January 2010.By 24 January, at least 52 aftershocks...
.
His work appeared as the covers of magazines such as Newsweek
Newsweek
Newsweek is an American weekly news magazine published in New York City. It is distributed throughout the United States and internationally. It is the second-largest news weekly magazine in the U.S., having trailed Time in circulation and advertising revenue for most of its existence...
and the Economist
The Economist
The Economist is an English-language weekly news and international affairs publication owned by The Economist Newspaper Ltd. and edited in offices in the City of Westminster, London, England. Continuous publication began under founder James Wilson in September 1843...
, and on the front pages of The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
, the Washington Post, and the Los Angeles Times
Los Angeles Times
The Los Angeles Times is a daily newspaper published in Los Angeles, California, since 1881. It was the second-largest metropolitan newspaper in circulation in the United States in 2008 and the fourth most widely distributed newspaper in the country....
.
His photography was featured in the documentary film, "Liberia: A Fragile Peace." (2006)
Iraq photos
Hondros's images from Iraq, especially a January 2005 picture series detailing the shooting of an Iraqi family by U.S. troops, were published extensively and garnered worldwide acclaim and criticism.On January 18, 2005, an Iraqi family was traveling in a car which failed to stop at a U.S. checkpoint in Tal Afar
Tal Afar
Tal Afar is a city and district in northwestern Iraq in the Ninawa Governorate located approximately 30 miles west of Mosul and 120 miles north west of Kirkuk.While no official census data exists, the city which had been...
. Thinking it was a suicide bomber, U.S. troops opened fire, killing both parents and injuring one of their five children sitting in the back seat. As a result of the worldwide interest in his case generated by Hondros's pictures, the boy was later flown to the United States for treatment in a Boston
Boston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
hospital. Hondros won dozens of international awards for the images. One of his pictures of this tragedy is likely to become "one of the few photos from the Iraq war that could stand out in history" according to Liam Kennedy, a professor at University College Dublin.
In an interview, Hondros stated:
Awards
Hondros's images received many awards:2003
- World Press PhotoWorld Press PhotoWorld Press Photo is an independent, non-profit organization based in Amsterdam, Netherlands. Founded in 1955 the organization is known for holding the world's largest and most prestigious annual press photography contest....
, AmsterdamAmsterdamAmsterdam is the largest city and the capital of the Netherlands. The current position of Amsterdam as capital city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands is governed by the constitution of August 24, 1815 and its successors. Amsterdam has a population of 783,364 within city limits, an urban population...
: Honorable Mention, Spot News - Overseas Press ClubOverseas Press ClubThe Overseas Press Club of America was founded in 1939 in New York City by a group of foreign correspondents. The wire service reporter Carol Weld was a founding member...
, New York: John Faber Award
2004
- Pulitzer Prize for Breaking News PhotographyPulitzer Prize for Breaking News PhotographyThe Pulitzer Prize for Breaking News Photography, has been awarded since 2000. Before 1968, there was only one photography category, the Pulitzer Prize for Photography, which was divided into the Pulitzer Prize for Spot News Photography and feature categories...
: Nominated Finalist for his work in Liberia - Pictures of the Year International Competition, Missouri School of Journalism: 3rd Place and Honourable Mention, Conflict
2005
- World Press Photo, Amsterdam: Second Prize, Spot News
2006
- Overseas Press Club, New York: Robert Capa Gold MedalRobert Capa Gold MedalThe Robert Capa Gold Medal is an award for "best published photographic reporting from abroad requiring exceptional courage and enterprise". It is awarded annually by the Overseas Press Club of America . It was created in honor of the war photographer Robert Capa...
for "exceptional courage and enterprise” in his work from Iraq
2007
- American Photo magazine: named "Hero of Photography" for his work in Iraq
- Days Japan International Photojournalism Awards: First Place
2008
- National Magazine Awards: nominee for his essay "A Window on Baghdad"
Libya and death
It was reported on April 20, 2011, that Hondros had been fatally wounded in a mortar attack by government forces in Misrata while covering the 2011 Libyan civil war2011 Libyan civil war
The 2011 Libyan civil war was an armed conflict in the North African state of Libya, fought between forces loyal to Colonel Muammar Gaddafi and those seeking to oust his government. The war was preceded by protests in Benghazi beginning on 15 February 2011, which led to clashes with security...
. Photojournalist Tim Hetherington
Tim Hetherington
Timothy Alistair Telemachus Hetherington was a British-American photojournalistwith work that "ranged from multi-screen installations, to fly-poster exhibitions, to handheld device downloads." He was best known for the documentary film Restrepo , which he co-directed with Sebastian Junger; the...
was killed in the attack, which wounded two other photographers. A source said that the group was traveling with rebel fighters. According to The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
, Hondros died from his injuries as a result of severe brain trauma.
External links
- Chris Hondros: Photographer at War - slideshow by Life magazine