It’s one of the most recognizable images in the world. The Twin Towers stand with orange and red flames erupting from the upper levels, black smoke staining the blue sky in the background.

“Seeing an image like that can almost make me cry,” said Daniella Variale, of Nevada. “I feel sadness and stressfulness because so many people died there, even though I have no connection to them.”

Led by instructors Joe Grimm and Bret Begun, students voiced off regarding the publication of the two iconic photos from Sept. 11, 2001, for an article commemorating the 10th anniversary. Students had the option to raise one of three cards in a blind vote to express if they would run the photos with red signifying no, green signifying yes and yellow as maybe.

“I thought that they were both very disheartening, but they were certainly compelling,” said Morgan Manella, of Florida. “It made all of us remember the tragedy, remember 9/11, and I think it is important that they be published for people to see.”

When feelings of grief and hope come together a decade after the attacks, Gabe Rosenberg found that the story’s context did not call for photos of the past but of a more optimistic future. Yet the Pittsburgh native refers to himself as a “run-it guy” when it comes to publishing sensitive material.

“I’m not squeamish at all about running pictures because I find that showing a photograph is the most important and easiest way to bring about change,” he said. “But to run an article 10 years later is not going to bring about any change.”

The Sept. 11 photos were only two in a series of real-world ethical editorial decisions created by Grimm and other instructors. Grimm also stressed that many decisions require split-second judgment.

“I really liked the ethics labs because they had real live scenarios that we could really relate to,” said Michele Ko, of New York. “Some of them showed us that the world of journalism is all about ethical decisions, deciding what you feel is right and what you feel is newsworthy.”

Ko said that being from New York gave her a unique perspective into this particular issue.

“At my school, there are a few people who actually lost family members in 9/11,” she said. “There are so many people that have strong connections to that day.”

Ko also said she particularly enjoyed the colored card system since the cards provided a good visual representation of the cherubs’ personal beliefs and allowed them to gauge how their decisions compared with others.

“I liked the way they did the three colors because it was so interactive and it forced you to make a decision,” Ko said. “Because you had to raise a card, it made people stay firm.”

Now it’s your turn:

Here’s how the 2011 Cherubs voted:

Yes: 86%
No: 14%