‘The Falling Man’ Photographer Talks About His Haunting 9/11 Photo

In the moments after the September 11, 2001, attacks, Associated Press photojournalist Richard Drew shot a haunting photo of a man falling from the World Trade Center. In the new 4-minute video above by TIME, Drew shares the story behind that famous and controversial photo.

Note: The video contains graphic images that may be disturbing to some viewers.

“On a day of mass tragedy, Falling Man is one of the only widely seen pictures that shows someone dying,” TIME writes. “The photo was published in newspapers around the U.S. in the days after the attacks, but backlash from readers forced it into temporary obscurity.”

“The true power of Falling Man, however, is less about who its subject was and more about what he became: a makeshift Unknown Soldier in an often unknown and uncertain war, suspended forever in history.”

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