June 5, 1989. Beijing. Most people think there is just one "Tank Man." You’ve seen the shot—a lone guy in a white shirt, grocery bags in hand, standing like a wall against a column of Type 59 tanks. It’s the ultimate David vs. Goliath moment. But honestly, the story of how those pictures of tank man actually made it out of China is way more chaotic than the calm image suggests.
It wasn’t just one lucky photographer on a balcony. It was a desperate, terrifying scramble involving hidden film, secret police, and even a hotel toilet.
Most of us recognize the Jeff Widener version. He was shooting for the Associated Press from the sixth floor of the Beijing Hotel. He was sick with the flu, nursing a concussion from a stray rock, and nearly out of film. A random American tourist named Kirk Martsen actually helped him out, smuggling a single roll of Fuji color negative film to him. When the tanks rolled down Chang’an Avenue, Widener thought the guy was going to "screw up his composition." Then he realized what he was seeing.
He clicked the shutter.
But Widener wasn't alone. There were actually five different photographers who captured that specific moment, plus several TV crews. Each of them has a story that sounds like a spy movie.
The Secret History of the Pictures of Tank Man
If you think taking the photo was hard, try keeping it. Charlie Cole, who was shooting for Newsweek, knew the Public Security Bureau (PSB) was coming for his film. He actually hid his roll in a plastic film canister, wrapped it in a towel, and tucked it into the tank of a hotel toilet.
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When the police broke into his room, they tore the place apart. They found his other cameras, ripped out the film, and made him sign a "confession" that he’d been taking photos during martial law. But they didn't look in the toilet. Cole went back a day and a half later, prayed the film wasn't water-damaged, and got it to the world. He ended up winning the World Press Photo of the Year for it.
Then there’s the wide shot.
Stuart Franklin, working for Magnum, took a much wider perspective. In his version, you can see just how many tanks there were—a massive, winding line that makes the lone man look even smaller, even more vulnerable. Franklin had his film smuggled out of the country by a French student who hid it in a box of tea.
Who actually took the shots?
- Jeff Widener (AP): The most famous close-up.
- Charlie Cole (Newsweek): The one hidden in the toilet.
- Stuart Franklin (Magnum): The wide-angle perspective.
- Arthur Tsang Hin Wah (Reuters): A slightly different angle from the balcony.
- Terril Jones (AP): A ground-level shot that wasn't discovered for twenty years.
Terril Jones's story is wild because he was actually on the street. In his photo, the tanks are blurred, coming right at the camera, and you can see the back of Tank Man's head. It feels much more immediate. Jones didn't even realize he had the "Tank Man" in his frame until 2009. He had been so focused on ducking for cover that he just kept shooting and moving.
The Mystery of the Man in the White Shirt
Who was he? We still don’t know.
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The British tabloid Sunday Express famously named him as Wang Weilin, a 19-year-old student, but that’s never been verified. Some people think he was a local factory worker just trying to get home with his groceries. Others swear he was a student from out of town.
In the video footage—which is often overlooked compared to the still pictures of tank man—you see him actually climb onto the lead tank. He bangs on the lid. He talks to the driver. When the tank tries to maneuver around him, he steps back into its path. Eventually, two people in blue shirts run out and pull him away into the crowd.
Were those people concerned bystanders? Or were they plainclothes security?
If you ask the Chinese government, they’ll tell you the scene proves the "humanity" of their military because the tanks didn't run him over. If you ask most historians, they’ll point out that the man likely faced a grim fate. In 1990, Jiang Zemin told Barbara Walters, "I think never killed," but he couldn't say where the man was.
Why These Images Still Matter in 2026
Even now, decades later, these photos are a massive point of tension. In mainland China, they are virtually scrubbed from the internet. They call it the "Great Firewall" for a reason. If you try to search for these images there, you get nothing.
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This isn't just about one guy and some tanks. It's about the "Avenue of Eternal Peace" (which is what Chang’an means) becoming a war zone. It's about the fact that for a few minutes, the entire machinery of a state was brought to a dead stop by a guy with shopping bags.
The technical details of the photos are interesting too. Widener was shooting at a very slow shutter speed—around 1/30th of a second. If his hand had shaken even a tiny bit, the most famous image of the 20th century would have been a blurry mess. He used a 400mm lens with a doubler, which is why the image looks a bit "flat" and compressed.
Actionable Insights for History Buffs
- Look for the Uncropped Versions: Most textbooks crop the image to show just one or two tanks. Find the Stuart Franklin wide shot to understand the true scale of the column.
- Watch the Raw Video: Search for the CNN or ABC News raw footage. Seeing the man move, dance in front of the tanks, and talk to the soldiers adds a layer of humanity that a still photo can't capture.
- Verify Your Sources: Many "new" photos of Tank Man pop up on social media that are actually AI-generated or from movie sets. Always cross-reference with the five names listed above (Widener, Cole, Franklin, Tsang, Jones).
The power of these pictures of tank man isn't just in the defiance. It's in the anonymity. Because we don't know who he was, he can be anyone. He’s the "Unknown Rebel." He represents the idea that even when things are at their absolute darkest, one person can decide to stand still.
To truly understand the impact of these images, your next step is to compare the Charlie Cole and Jeff Widener versions side-by-side; notice how the slight change in height and angle changes the "feeling" of the confrontation from a standoff to a plea.