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Photographer Steps Forward to Claim Pulitzer Prize

DEBORAH AMOS, host:

A photographer is claiming a Pulitzer Prize 27 years after he took the photograph that won it. The photograph was first published in 1979. It showed a firing squad in the midst of the revolution in Iran. In that picture, you see the instant that a row of blindfolded men crumpled over from the shots all except one blindfolded man who is still standing.

STEVE INSKEEP, host:

The image gave the world an early look at how Iran's Islamic rulers would treat their enemies. But when the photo was circulated, the photographer's name was withheld for his safety. And when the Pulitzer Prize board selected the photograph, it was forced to leave the photographer's name as anonymous. But last week The Wall Street Journal revealed Jahangir Razmi as the true photographer. And the reporter, Joshua Prager, spoke at NPR's WEEKEND EDITION SATURDAY.

Mr. JOSHUA PRAGER (Reporter, The Wall Street Journal): I was able to trace back who had sent the picture from Tehran to Brussels to the rest of the world. So it was really a matter of working backwards, following the picture from the United States through Brussels and back to Tehran.

AMOS: Now the Pulitzer Prize board will present the award, along with the $10,000 cash prize, to Razmi in May.

SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC

This is MORNING EDITION from NPR News. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.