Washington Post Photographer's Award-Winning Wrestling Photo Disqualified For Being Terribly Photoshopped

Tracy Woodward, a staff photographer for the Washington Post recently won an Award of Excellence from the White House News Photographers Association for the above photo. Well, not exactly the above photo. Move that handy slider thing all the way to the right to see the original picture, as published in the newspaper. Then move it all the way to the left to see the altered version that was submitted for and won the award.

The referee is gone! (Not completely. Even in the manipulated version, you can make out the silhouette of his black pants.) Somehow, this wouldn't have been caught if the

Golon also told News Photographer magazine today that the Post didn't enter Woodward's photograph into the WHNPA contest, that the photographer prepared and submitted his own entry. Then when Post editors discovered that the altered picture had been entered in the contest, she said, they informed WHNPA and the Post withdrew the image.

The WHNPA rescinded Woodward's award. Oh, but the proto-Photoshopped image of the Kent State Massacre takes out one unsightly fencepost and becomes historic. I see how it is.

[ NPPA via Romenesko]