A New York Post front page photo of a man about to be hit by an oncoming subway train has provoked fury from readers wondering why nobody, including the photographer, pulled the victim to safety - and why the tabloid published the image.

Police say the victim, named as 58-year-old Ki-Suck Han, was thrown onto the tracks during a fight on Monday with a man in a Manhattan subway station. He then staggered to his feet and tried, but failed to get out the way of a train, which killed him - in full view of a crowd of passengers.

One of those bystanders was a freelance photographer from the Post who managed to take a series of photos, including the one occupying the whole front page on Tuesday under the headline: "Pushed on the subway track, this man is about to die."

In a video report on the story, the Post appeared to suggest that the photo and two others in a double spread inside the newspaper, were unintentional by-product of the photographer's rescue attempt.