iwojima

Photographer Joe Rosenthal Shares the Story Behind ‘Raising the Flag on Iwo Jima’

70 years ago today, photographer Joe Rosenthal captured a photograph of six US soldiers raising a flag on Mount Suribachi during the Battle of Iwo Jima in World War II. That photo (shown above), became an instant iconic image -- these days we would say it "went viral" -- and was published in thousands of publications around the world.

It went on to became the only photo to win a Pulitzer Prize in the same year it was published, and the image is now one of the most republished and recognizable photos of all time.