RIP Dith Pran, an Inspiration to All

Dith was an interpreter and photographer working with New York Times reporter Sydney Schanberg, covering horror of what was going on in Cambodia during the 1970s. When it became too dangerous to operate, Dith helped save the lives of many foreign journalists before being sent by the government to a death camp. He survived and his ordeal was the basis for "The Killing Fields" movie and book.

The New York Times hired Dith as a photographer in 1980 after he moved to the United States, and in my two years living in New York, I met him a few times and it was an honor every time I shook his hand. He was connected to many activities that helped student journalists and for seeking justice for the genocide victims in his home country and elsewhere.

There's been many articles and obituaries published since Sunday honoring this great man. They are all well deserved. If you don't know about Cambodia's killing fields or Dith Pran, you should. Here are some links to get you started:

Dith Pran, photojournalist and survivor of Killing Fields, dies at 65 -- New York Times

Remembering Dith Pran -- Poynter.org

Dith Pran, pioneer, role model, legend, friend -- AAJA.org

Interpreter of memories from the Killing Fields -- Washington Post

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News and Politics

Harry Mok

Editor in chief

Editor in Chief Harry Mok wrote about growing up on a Chinese vegetable farm for the second issue of Hyphen and has been a volunteer editor since 2004. As a board member of the San Francisco and New York chapters of the Asian American Journalists Association, Harry has recruited and organized events for student members. He holds a master’s degree in journalism from the University of California, Berkeley, where he was also a graduate student instructor in the Asian American Studies Department.

Comments

lala wrote on Wed, 04/02/2008 - 10:05am

Sad to hear of his death. He truly embodied the human spirit.

lisalee wrote on Wed, 04/02/2008 - 11:05am

i was so sad to hear this as well. i saw "the killing fields" last year and it is an amazing film, and heard that it only displayed an ounce of the terror that really happened in cambodia around the time that khmer rouge took over. i'd highly recommend anyone who has not seen it to watch it. now i'm wondering if dith has a biography out...

George Chell wrote on Thu, 04/03/2008 - 10:21am

I am glad that the lead actor in Killing Fields was not white..unlike the movie 21! I am sort of surprised that Hyphen has not done a piece on the 21 controversy.

Harry Mok wrote on Thu, 04/03/2008 - 10:25am

George, there was a post a couple of weeks ago by Alvin about "21."

George Chell wrote on Thu, 04/03/2008 - 1:09pm

Sorry Harry. Having difficulty with the new design of the website.Thanks