My take on the debate:
The internet is awash with photographs, the proliferation of smartphones has turned everyone into a photographer. The reality is that most are not photographers but 'snappers', snapping snapshots.
Snapshots have their place as records, a moment frozen in time. I've taken more than my fair share over the years and will continue to do so. But to be meaningful they require context. The snapshot can trigger deeper emotions, but a connection with that moment in time has to exist; to the casual observer, they are superficial and meaningless.
A photograph can capture the imagination and stir emotions; it can tell a story whilst prompting questions; it can be delicately artistic or brutally honest.
Snapshots capture a memory, photographs tell a story.