After the Zimmerman Trial: Hoodie Comes into its Own as Cultural Symbol
Since Trayvon Martin's death, the article of clothing has come to represent the stereotyping of young black males. This week, it also became the envelope and container by which to express the sense of bias and omission of race from the Zimmerman trial and acquittal.
Continue ReadingReady, Aim, Backfire: Police Photographer's "Rolling Stone Retribution" Photos
To the extent that this kid looks so small and exposed, so bloodied and bowed, so targeted by shooters and shooters alike, I wonder if Mr. Murphy and his counterparts aren't feeling now like they should have just finished the job.
Continue ReadingRolling Stone Boston Bomber Cover. Hmm, We Liked It.
Exaggerating and elevating the kid's likeability might arguably be justifiable if it leads citizens beyond the knee-jerk opposite.
Continue ReadingPortrait from Rio: Glenn Greenwald's Growing Visibility in the Snowden Picture
I don't presume to know Greenwald's thinking relative to his own move into the spotlight. Still, it's important to consider the trade-offs and the consequent risk to your image that come with this magnitude of exposure.
Continue ReadingMultiracial Zimmerman Protest Photos: Sign of Change or Wishful Thinking?
One thing that struck me immediately about the photo coverage of the response to the Zimmerman verdict, distinct from at least recent civil rights inspired imagery, is the number of newswire images highlighting a multi-racial response.
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Terrorism Revisualized
Could you imagine the appearance of such a photo during the Dubya era, the concept -- and the threat -- of terrorism being that absolute?
Continue ReadingThe Shooting Death of Ahmed Samir Assem
Was there was ever a stronger scene screaming out for an international response to the endangerment of journalists?
Continue ReadingAsiana Crash Photos: NTSB Scoops BuzzFeed
It's interesting and curious -- in this era of social networking, scoops, and competition for the money shot between new media, traditional media and citizen journalists -- to look at these photos of the Asiana Airlines crash site from the NTSB.
Continue ReadingScenes from a Tweet Campaign: Liz Cheney Hearts WYO
I hate to say this but the Western vocabulary, combined with pushing the kids in front of the camera like that and then laying on the patriotic theme that thick only serves to remind me of another PR-savvy GOP pol, the one who sees Russia from her porch.
Continue ReadingEgyptian Military vs Muslim Brotherhood: At the Battle of YouTube
It's not only (perversely) interesting how social media is evolving as an extension of the battleground but how everyday web metrics become a defacto measurement of who's up and who's down in the contest for hearts and minds.
Continue ReadingThoughts on the Yasiin Bey (Mos Def) Gitmo-"Inspired" Force-Feeding Video
Of course, buzz arises whenever a particular photo or set of photos with blowback potential make the news -- most typically these days, involving their suppression. What we are hardly mindful of, on the other hand, is the ongoing obscuring or the outright censorship of imagery when an issue...
Continue Reading(Some Takes on) The First Arrest Caught on Google Glass
If there's something memorable here, it's the contrast with those dinosaurs rushing around filming the dust up with their cell phones.
Continue ReadingSFO Asiana Accident: The Power of David Eun's "I Just Crashed" Tweet
There isn't a photo that comes close to the power of the one taken by passenger and Samsung exec, David Eun, from the brown grassy field just off the runway near the body of the plane. The question, though, is why?
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Weiner: "I’m More Vulnerable in Kind of this Weird Way"
This image by photographer Todd Heisler illustrating this NYT story is both wonderful and a gift to the city's most ambitious penitent.
Continue ReadingThat Giant Laser Messaging in Tahrir Square: It's Not a Coup
What I find interesting is how defensive this phrase is.
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Alexandria Sunset: A Metaphor
What's so fascinating about this Egyptian sunset that's gone viral over the past few days is how much the heavy-handed construction of reality mirrors the radical re-engineering that has just taken place in Egypt.
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