The American Teenager Project

The American Teenager Project works to show the struggles and injustice of youth, and to highlight the value of adolescents through photography and photojournalism. The photographer, Robin Bowman, has been working as a freelance photojournalist for 28 years. She is committed to capturing crises and injustices to bring a concern for the human condition to the media. One story that stood out to me was the portrait and interview of Patrick Roberts. I think he is a great example of what Bowman is trying to make her readers understand- that teenagers go through much more than many people see from the outside. By just looking at the photo, Roberts doesn't seem to look like someone with an opinion or an outlook on life. However, when you read his interview, you find that he has gone through a lot at his age and has a strong opinion on the world because of it. I like Bowman's work because I think the stories are very real and eye opening. I like that she chooses teenagers of many backgrounds and includes the details of each persons story. One thing I would have liked is if she put more than one photo of each person or took of photo of something about them that relates with each teen. This falls under the category of photojournalism because it is telling a story through the pictures and interviews of the teenagers. It is ,however, different from traditional photojournalism because its not communicating news but rather communicating their stories.