No Autopsy For Teddy?
I still think one of the biggest Katrina stories is the environmental one. There is a lot of information on the net about the ecological situation, and most of it is pretty disturbing. According to the Wall Street Journal (via SEEN), for instance, at least 193,000 barrels of oil...
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Your Turn: Man of the Season — Revisited
1. 2. 3. 4. (1.) This week. ( 2.) June ’05 ( 3.) February ’05 (4.) January ’05 (re-election) (click for larger views) Who said politics has a short memory? If you’ve put in a season or two with the BAG, you know that I’ve admired the...
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Flat Head Tastes Flat Bread
The visuals are just too good to believe — as expose, I mean. Karen Hughes, self-described "Mom," supposed PR expert, Bush hand-holder and now US Undersecretary of State for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs, is just wrapping up her first trip abroad, having visited Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Turkey. ...
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Katrina Aftermath: And Then I Saw These
Until last night, I thought the news images we had seen from New Orleans during the worst days of Katrina were fundamentally unvarnished. And then I saw these. Among his peers, Alan Chin is regarded as one of the finest photojournalists in the field -- and I say that...
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Wingnut Watch: On Michelle Malkin's TV
In the post-Katrina world, in which America seems (at least, temporarily) to have discovered racial and class disparity, it is instructive to recall the unending lectures (some would say, harassment) about "values" we’ve endured from the right wing. (Yes, I’m referring to superior folks like inside trader and Schiavo...
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Your Turn: In The Ruins
“You don’t really think about the situation rationally at such an overwhelming time, of course. If it’s home, elegiac competes with angry for emotional first place.” I’ve been holding on to this illustration, and have been continuing to look at it for about two weeks. What’s been particularly strange...
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The Weeks After New Orleans: A Presidential Retrospective (#4)
Hurricane Rita Approaches Landfall September 23rd, 2004 Slightly more than three weeks after Hurricane Katrina lays waste to New Orleans, a new hurricane threatens the Gulf Coast. Not to be seen as “out of touch,” the President and his PR team realize he needs to appear fully engaged. The...
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Expanding The BAG
Given the unfolding crisis in the South, I regret the timing of this message. However, if you’re a fan of the BAG, you will be pleased to know that I just joined The Huffington Post as a regular contributing blogger. My first effort is available here. I will not...
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Rita Madness: Getting Schooled On An Evacuation
If the image of partly submerged school buses is destined to become an enduring reminder of the Katrina debacle, a picture like the one just below it could well earn a similar designation in connection to hurricane Rita. While the Republicans — running interference for Bush and FEMA —...
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John, We Hardly Knew Ya (…Or Jane)
You know why I am so angry with Senator Leahy (who has decided to vote for confirmation of John Roberts)? Because he and his committee never provided us with enough of a sense of who Roberts is or what he believes, so that… when I see pictures of Roberts...
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Rita Madness
If not a “finest hour,” the media coverage in the immediate aftermath of Katrina was at least one of the “better hours.” With a new storm brewing off Florida and aiming for Eastern Texas, however, it appears the press is acting like underestimation is unaffordable. As if preparing for...
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Team Colors
If you’ve been following the BAG, you know I’m interested in the way race relates to visual politics. At the same time, however, I’m even more interested in the way politics relates to visual politics. With Katrina suddenly inviting inspection of the “two Americas” (whether defined by rich/poor, white/non-white,...
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Playing the Cathedral
In the first flood of photos documenting the effects of Hurricane Katrina, I hadn’t noticed how many struck a religious theme. Looking more closely, however, there were any number of floating icons, windswept priests, home made signs appealing for mercy, and churches with roofs blown off and spires folded...
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Can't Lay A Glove On Him
Perhaps for lack of greater insight into the true nature of John Roberts, the NYT’s confirmation coverage seemed to focus on body language. The first image above is from a montage of Roberts’ hand gestures, suggesting that the nominee (although remaining largely invisible) was able to control the content...
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A Little Separation
Time races, and then time slows down and you recollect. On the morning of September 1st, I clearly remember the shocking headline at the top of the NYT website reporting a catastrophe on a bridge in Kadhimiya, outside Baghdad. Almost 1,000 Shiite pilgrims had died in a stampede started...
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Bush's N.O. Restart — A Visual Report Card
(Bloggers Note: Before anybody gets crazy on me, I’m just having a little fun here. It’s Friday. …And, consider the material I have to work with!) I’ve been throwing so much analysis at you this week, I thought it was time for the visuals to do more of the...
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Fly E.P.A.
This subject might not be too popular, but the old environmentalist in me just can’t pass it by. A few days ago, I wrote about the tendency for photojournalist to become a little too artistic in the face of environmental problems. I also cited an article in the NYT...
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Bush's UN-doing
Yesterday’s images of Bush at the U.N. tell us a lot about what we already know. But they also start to tell us about what we can expect. We know Condi is the teacher and Bush is her pupil. We also know Bush is monitored for every word...
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