A Pulitzer Prize-nominated Ohio University alumnus died yesterday during an attack in Libya, where the photojournalist was covering fighting between rebels and government forces.
Chris Hondros, 41, a 2006 graduate of the School of Visual Communication’s master’s program, suffered an “irreversible and unsurvivable head wound,” said Terry Eiler, director of OU’s VisCom school.
Don Winslow, editor of the National Press Photographer’s Association, is communicating with a surgeon in Libya and informed Eiler of Hondros’ condition.
Tim Hetherington, co-director of the Oscar-nominated documentary Restrepo, was also killed during the attack in Misrata, Libya, and two other photographers were injured. Michael Christopher Brown, a 2003 OU alumnus, suffered “light shrapnel wounds,” Eiler said.
Hondros, a Pulitzer-prize finalist, was working as a senior staff photographer for Getty Images, according to his website. He has also covered wars in Afghanistan, Iraq and Liberia.
“This is a terrible day for photojournalism,” Eiler said. “Good, young talent was lost.”
Jeff Swensen, a close friend and former OU roommate of Hondros’, echoed that thought.
“He stands as an example of what (OU’s) VisCom school is about,” Swensen said. “… He loved OU. The kind of network and camaraderie built at that place is unmatched.”
Hondros first entered the VisCom school in 1995 and completed his coursework by 1997, but he did not finish his master’s project until 2006, Eiler said. He was scheduled to speak at OU’s VisCom Alumni Day last week, but canceled 10 days before the event to go to Libya.
“I told him he should get out of Libya because I thought Libya was a bad place,” Swensen said. “But he loved what he did. … He felt like he had to be in Libya. I don’t know why we cover certain stories and not others, but he was determined to tell that story.”
Eiler last heard from Hondros at the beginning of April, he said.
“The biggest issue is the instability of things in the world and whether I have to go back to the Middle East,” Hondros said in an email to Eiler.
In another email to Eiler, Hondros said he would be “headed to Libya sooner rather than later,” and asked if he could coordinate a visit to OU once he returned.
Hondros was engaged and planning his wedding before he left for Libya and wanted to have kids, Swensen said.
“It’s really a loss for us all, but he’s a great example of somebody who really worked hard and didn’t stop,” Swensen said. “He really sacrificed his personal life quite a bit to go and tell these stories.”
The U.S. Office of the Press Secretary issued a statement saying the U.S. will assist those who were injured in the attack with getting the care they need.
“Journalists across the globe risk their lives each day to keep us informed. … The Libyan government and all governments across the world must take steps to protect journalists doing this vital work,” the Office of the Press Secretary said in a statement. “… Our thoughts are with these brave journalists and their loved ones.”
The ongoing conflict in Libya involves government forces loyal to Col. Moammar Gadhafi and rebels seeking to depose him. The rebel-held city of Misrata has been under continuous shelling by government troops, the Associated Press reported.
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