FACT SHEET
Images of Tony Gleaton (TRT:26:14)
Contact: Judy Oskam (806)742-3385
College of Mass Communications
Texas Tech University
judy.oskam@ttu.edu
Description: The television documentary Images of Tony Gleaton (TRT 26:14) showcases Gleaton’s awardwinning photography of Black and Native American Cowboys and the African Diaspora in Latin America.
Because of his background, much of Gleaton’s work focuses on the social construction of race. Gleaton
continues his adventures on his bicycle and in a renovated 1972 Army ambulance. The program explores how
Gleaton, while shooting in documentary style, connects with his subjects to achieve a unique image.
Gleaton is well known for his collection of photographs entitled, Africa’s Legacy in Mexico, Central and South
America. He creates and captures images that tell the story of the other - those people separated from any
dominant cultural group. Tony Gleaton has exhibited work at galleries throughout the United States and
Mexico, including: the National Museum of American Art, the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, and the
Smithsonian.
More than 80 Black & White portraits are featured in this program. Photographers Gary Miller and Andrew
Liccardo comment on Gleaton’s pioneering work in the area of cultural photography. Historian William
Tydeman, Director of the Texas Tech University Southwest Collection, predicts Gleaton will have a prominent
place in the history of documentary photography. According to Tydeman, “Tony will be at the absolute top of
those photographers who have had a concentration on ethnicity, on race and the interactions between race,
culture and behavior.”
Distribution: American Public Television is the national distributor for Images of Tony Gleaton. APT will
make the program available to public television stations across the country on November 1, 2005.
Images of Tony Gleaton was produced by the award-winning team of Judy Oskam (producer/director) and
Melinda Goodspeed (photojournalist). Images of Tony Gleaton won a 2005 Bronze Telly (film/video cultural
category), a 2004 Aegis Award of Excellence and was a finalist in the 2005 Popular Culture Association Rollins
Documentary competition. Dr. Judy Oskam is an associate professor of electronic media & communications in
the College of Mass Communications at Texas Tech University. Melinda Goodspeed is a photojournalist in the
Broadcast Bureau - Office of Communications and Marketing at Texas Tech University.
Presenting Station: KTXT-TV, Texas Tech University – Lubbock, Texas. www.ktxt.org
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