Brilliant

What can you do when the cursor is blinking on the blank page and you have nothing to say?

Writer’s block, creative blanks, brain freezes.  They happens sometimes and the creative vibe just halts.  It is annoying and can last seconds or days, delaying productivity, flow and passion production.  I bet this will help.  Getty Images has just launched Moodstream, and the most articulate thing I can come up with right now is very very cool. Even if you don’t have need inspiration, this little buddy will surely make the day brighter, mellower, warmer, more aggressive than it was before.  The idea seems to be passed loosely on Pandora, but combines the idea of the music genome and musical grouping with an individual’s preferences and mood.  But wait, there’s more!  Along with the music comes a streaming line of imagery from Getty’s immense video and still image catalogue.  You tell Moodstream how you are feeling (or even how you would want to be feeling I suppose) and it chooses a soundtrack and image reel to stimulate your senses.  The stream can be as interactive and constantly shifting as you wish…or it can just roll.  I have been an avid supporter of Pandora for a few years, but this seems better for the everyday – times when I don’t necessarily need to know what is playing, I just want a specific type of sound.  For a creative type like me, this tool seems so obvious.  I look forward to enjoying many future streams.

Do these match?

What does this image tell you about the attached article?

CNN.com today ran a front page article about the Army’s latest report concerning the war in Iraq and the admission of mistakes, again and again, from top military leaders. The story itself is a grand ‘no kidding’ smack on the forehead, but the bit that struck me was the photo located just above the headline.

Why do I care about the relationship between the image and the article it accompanies? Let me tell you. I just finished a little research project on the subject as a completion of my Master’s degree at Georgetown. In my heavily researched opinion, I have come to the conclusion that online mainstream media sites (like CNN, MSNBC, etc.) need to do a better job of using imagery to portray what actually happens in the war zone. Historically, CNN chooses beautiful images that are pleasing to the eye, but have little-to-no connection to the specific story to which they are attached. This particular image of the Iraq skyline ignited doesn’t tell us much, but generally seems to be better than the average selected imagery. Semiotically, the photograph tells us that the burning of the city is the most important piece of meaning within the frame. The smoke clouds are orange (the brightest and most prominent color in the picture) and are situated in the key top spot. Our eye naturally goes to it and recognizes it first. The rest of the image sits in shadow, save for the lighted buildings. We now know that we are looking at a city image in the desert, as the silhouette of palm trees represent desert climate. But what does this image tell us about the article? Not much, other than it is a picture of Iraq (we assume, as we see desert and burning?). CNN.com uses alot of stock images of desert, palm trees and sandy landscape shots to illustrate any article about the war. Why? These images tell us nothing about the war or the specific article, other than to set the scene. I know we have photojournalists on the ground taking haunting, beautiful and informative images of the war. Why don’t we see them? What are these bland stock images telling us about the day-to-day events of the action?