COMMENT In my humble contribution to the field of visual anthropology, I classify two major genera and six subordinate species (three for each genus) of photographs of political figures in Malaysia that one may find in either print or online media.
Most published photographs are hyperbolically rhetorical, favouring the ideological pose of the subject (e.g. the politician), while rarely can one detect any authorship in the photographer. The composition and content of photos one finds in the newspaper or online news portals usually seem to be clearly dictated by the person being photographed, not the photographer.
Both the opposition parties and the ruling coalition use images of all of the following categories, although some are more favoured by particular groups. It is hoped that this taxonomy will serve as a guide for beginning and future politicians so that they may more easily continue the same reductive political discourse.
The Handout
This is the most common and popular type of photograph one will find in the news. It is most often used by members of the ruling coalition, although opposition politicians will sometimes also feel compelled to produce a similar tableau.
The photograph shows a politician handing over a check or envelope of cash to a grateful needy citizen. Thus the intended interpretation is that said political representative has successfully addressed the institutional problems of underdevelopment by tossing a few ringgit to a few people.
Furthermore, the photograph should give the impression that the funding for this handout comes from the individual, not appropriated public funds.
Ideally the poor recipient can pose and affect a facial expression that combines a delicate balance of despair and joyful gratitude. The politician need just smile to demonstrate leadership and a job well done.
The Pointing
This type of picture does not appear as frequently as the handout, in part because it is usually favoured by opposition politicians who do not receive as much mainstream press coverage as those giving handouts.
These photographs stage a politician facing the camera while pointing at a failed infrastructure project, like an uncompleted road for example, as if to say, "Hey, look at this! Isn't it bad? I think so!"
Constituents who have suffered from the failed project can be used as a backdrop to add context and visual variety. In the sub-categories of ‘The Police Report’ and ‘The Press Conference’, pieces of paper with writing on them are often pointed at.
It may also be noted that pointing at a problem highlights the pointer instead of offering a solution. Alternative to its usual function of lackadaisical critique, ‘The Pointing’ can also be used to point at something that the masses are instructed to interpret as a successful enterprise.
The following are six sub-categories.
The Police Report
‘The Police Report’ is rhetorically akin to ‘The Pointing’, and indeed the photo may even include someone pointing at a police report. The police report photo is deployed by both politicians and regular citizens.
In order to register a complaint or to make a political argument, instead of visiting the appropriate office or engaging in an actual debate with someone, the subject will make a police report. The police will hear the complaint, type it up, and the press will be invited to take a photo of the plaintiff outside the police station holding the police report.
Thus, the complaint becomes a matter of public record. Of course the indulgence of this procedure means that police have less opportunity to investigate and prevent actual crimes.
The Press Conference
Here an interest group or a politician with an entourage sits at a table and faces the camera, often holding a piece of paper or other object. This paper may sometimes be a police report, and thus ‘The Press Conference’ is often indistinguishable from either ‘The Police Report’ or ‘The Pointing’.
A unique example of ‘The Press Conference’ appears in the Oct 24 edition of The Borneo Post . Here, the assemblyman for Pujut stages ‘The Press Conference’ at a coffeeshop, while the object he holds is actually another photograph, representative of ‘The Handout’ type.
Thus a picture within a picture is produced, and the subsequent metapicture reveals the insatiable compulsion for staged quotidian images.
Drugs on the Table
This type of photograph is not indigenous to Malaysia specifically and can be found all over the world.
In order to demonstrate that they are doing their job, the police must hold a press conference, in which they put "drugs on the table" - that is, the spoils of a successful raid, which, it will be argued, represent a devastating blow in the war on crime.
In Sarawak, homemade weapons seized from rural hunters may be substituted if a drug raid cannot be arranged.
The Thumbs Up/1Malaysia
A group of people demonstrate their support for something, or attempt to mark the existence of something, by holding up a finger, as if to say, whatever this is, it is the best: number 1.
The gesture may be a thumbs up, or it may be a raised index finger, which then can represent ‘1Malaysia’. The ‘1Malaysia’ sign can be incorporated into ‘The Handout’ if so desired depending on the dexterity of the participants.
Although traditionally the photo is taken at eye level, a recent development features a photo taken from above the crowd, as the crowd looks up at the camera. What effect or meaning this is intended to have, aside from a sense of grandiose spatial depth, is unclear.
This photo can also be produced as a ‘selfie’ (a photo taken of one's own self - or selves) using a monopod device attached to a camera phone. In this case, there is conveniently no need for a real photographer.
The Courtesy Call
A visiting dignitary or organisation will pay their respects to a certain official by making a ‘courtesy call’ to the official's office. A chair and couch may be required, while the courtesy call often coincides with ‘The Handout’, as the reward for the courtesy call.
The Palantír
While this photograph can also be termed ‘The Opening Gimmick’, because of the frequent use of a shiny sphere as the ‘gimmick’ device to symbolically open an event or exhibition, it is called ‘The Palantír’ after the magical crystal ball from ‘The Lord of the Rings’ trilogy that grants a view into the world of the dark lord Sauron by those who grab it.
‘The Palantír’ photograph should include bystanders grinning in awe at the power of he who wields the power of the gimmick.
DR CHARLES LEARY is a lecturer in film and cultural studies. He is from United States and lives in Sarawak. The photographs from mostly Borneo Post are for illustration purposes.
