Reading the Pictures

Reading the Pictures

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1000 Words: Visual Defiance Against the Authoritarian State
Since Charlie Kirk’s assassination, the crackdown on dissent has jolted photojournalism, street art, and illustration—each surging now to galvanize…
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Michael Shaw
3
The Machinery of American Cruelty: A Visual Testament
How photographers are documenting the Trump administration's campaign of terror against immigrant communities
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Michael Shaw
7
Willful Blindness: How Denial Left Texas Children Defenseless Against the Climate Crisis
From systematic climate erasure to 'thoughts and prayers,’ the deadly cost of choosing not to see.
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Michael Shaw
4
The Only Shot That Matters: How One Mother’s Photo Exposes the Truth of an Unfolding Measles Epidemic
As the measles spread, a family’s hospital image lays bare the unheeded crisis—and the acute need for pictures of cause and consequences.
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Michael Shaw
2
Essential Images: 13 Scenes of Democracy Under Siege
From militarized raids to detention camps, these visuals expose and interrogate the country's slide into authoritarianism.
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Michael Shaw
5
What If They Gave A War And Nobody Came?
How LA residents refused Trump's invitation to violence—and why the most essential protest images tell a different story.
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Michael Shaw
3
What Now? Audacious Imagery Outside Immigration Court, Calling BS on the Trump-Musk “Melee,” and Researchers’ Fury
We sift the latest visual barrage to spotlight images at the heart of Trump’s war on democracy.
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Michael Shaw
Weapons as Props, Warriors as Roadies: Brandon Bell’s Deadpan Photos Call Out Massive Effort Behind Trump’s Military Parade
Behind the spectacle, a hollow ritual orchestrated at staggering public cost.
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Michael Shaw
The Oval Office as Demon's Lair
What's in a photo op? Trump's psychopathic corruption of American power.
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Michael Shaw
1
Vatican Celebration Photos Spotlight Pope Leo's Challenge to Trump's America
As American flags wave in St. Peter's Square, a humble pontiff elevates a competing vision of patriotism and national identity.
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Michael Shaw
Double Takes: Healthy, Wealthy…And Lies
In our new "Double Take" feature, we freeze-frame the images officials hope you'll miss—from detention SOS signals to political theater disguised as…
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Michael Shaw
Trump's Visual Legacy at 100 Days: Not Normal Pictures for Not Normal Times
I'm proud to share these 15 images, which the media's hundred-day photo reviews will likely ignore. Call it a democracy stress test.
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Michael Shaw
16
2:49
Selling Out Ukraine
Watch now (3 mins) | Our exclusive video exposes Trump’s Moscow pivot and its devastating cost to a key ally.
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Michael Shaw
 and 
Cara Finnegan
4
Signaling Strangelove: The New Yorker Cover's Brilliant Take on SignalGate
Barry Blitt’s masterpiece perfectly captures the essence of the Trump administration. It's a visual terror warning worthy of Kubrick himself.
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Michael Shaw
2
Reading the Pictures
Reading the Pictures
The non-profit Reading the Pictures is dedicated to the analysis of news photography and media images.
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