Amounts of cash and lots of large bills. The fed is essentially gave us whatever we wanted and needed. Thursday, august 27, south florida is just beginning the long process of rebuilding. Hurricane andrew has left more than 300,000 people without homes. It is the most expensive Natural Disaster in u. S. History. Many people did everything they could to help their neighbors, including workers at the fed. The Federal Reserve is like the main bank to all of these banks. They were going for help. Cashanks were in need of because the people were in need of cash, so we were there for all of the banks and all of the people. In about 10 minutes, we will air an oral history interview with photojournalist Frank Johnston who worked for United Press International in the 1960s and for the Washington Post for 35 years. We will see his photos and hear about his career covering the vietnam war, jonestown massacre, and events in texas following president kennedys assassination. The learn more about this collection from the Center Executive director. On the phone is dr. Carleton. Thanks first beginning with us. Delighted to be here. Why was it important to photojournalism section . News and photography also produces valuable historical evidence. These are documents that can be read just like a diary or a letter or any text or artifact. We wanted to include photographs in our opening. To document and provide evidence of the past. We began this initiative about 25 years ago because the archives of news photographers were basically being ignored by most museums who were more interested in art photography. Since we started, we have amassed a collection of more than 40 photographers. We are talking about definitive collections that include negatives, prints, contact sheets. We have approximately 8 million photographic images. Several photographers have placed their archives with us. Along with the university of texas press, we have based several books exclusively on our photographic holdings. How did you select the photographers you decided to include in the collection . We have a very expensive collection of political history and congressional history. Papers the sam raburn and the papers of nearly 70 former members of congress. And so one of the things we wanted to focus on were photographers in particular who were based in washington dc. Although that is not our exclusive area. We were particularly interested in those photographers who cover the white house, congress, politics and so forth. It was obvious to us who the leading photographers have been in the postworld war ii era that has been covering politics. That was one of the criteria we used. We selected and picked and chose really who we thought were the best. What prompted you to videotape the interviews you did with the photographers . We did a major exhibition called news to history 34 years ago. That exhibit showcased every one of the photographers whose work is with us. We brought the photographers too often for sort of a reunion. While we had them here we took , the opportunity to do video interviews with the photographers. Photojournalists spend most of their lives behind the camera. What were some of the things you discovered when you made them the subject of the story . Every photograph has a story behind the photograph, a back story behind the photograph. The best person to tell that story is the person who took the photograph. The photographer. One of the things i was interested in was to give the stories of the photographs they thought were the most important. We are also interested in capturing their thoughts about their work and the value of preserving it. Could you give us a short biography of some of the photographers . We have Frank Johnston who was there at the Lee Harvey Oswald shooting, november of 1963. Frank was at the jim jones suicide massacre. We was a stringer for United Press International. He spent many years as a Staff Photographer for the Washington Post. Eric draper was the only official white house photographer for george w. Bush. Eric worked as a Staff Photographer for the seattle times. The albuquerque tribune and the Associated Press. His work is particularly noteworthy because of the Vantage Point he had covering 911 out of the whitehouse. We have darrel who was a stringer for upi, Associated Press and was important as a photographer covering the carter administration. Carter never had an official white house for target for. Official white house photographer. He has the images we would have normally got through a white house photographer. And we have a twotime Pulitzer Prize winner. He is a proud graduate of the university of texas at austin. For 27 years he was a Staff Photographer for the Washington Post. He won the Pulitzer Prize for covering three generations of poverty in washington dc and the refugee situation in kosovo