BAGnewsNotes is a progressive blog dedicated to visual politics, the analysis of news images and the support of ‘concerned’ photojournalism. It is run by Michael Shaw, a Clinical Psychologist, writer, analyst of visual journalism and interpreter of political images.  “The BAG” offers a daily semiotic analysis of news and political images from a political, cultural or psychological point of view, and is also a platform for original social photography and photojournalism. It’s a great resource of photojournalists, especially for the more introspective moments when we take a look at what we’re doing and ask if we’re on the right track.

My aim is to provide a much more direct; far larger; less rarified; more expedient; and profoundly less commercialized or compromised channel between the visual and written narrative of the photographer on one end, and the concerned audience on the other.

In a typical post, a photo is presented, details within the photo are highlighted—isolated and pulled out for examination and discussion. The discussion then moves on to speculate beyond these details and explore the “story” within the image as it relates to a fact, meaning, message, or understanding within a specific context (media, politics, culture, religion, etc.) or framework (psychological, sociological, anthropological, technological).  Some posts are “investigative” in nature, where information is extracted from a photo that is newsworthy in itself, raises questions or sheds light on a political story, or provides an insight on political relationships or media practices.

While the process of photo analysis begins in the post, it is continued in the comment thread. BAGnewsNotes is like a daily seminar: the comment thread becomes an important supplement to the post, and many commenters are regular visitors to the site.  Check out the latest posts (updated automatically):

• Fly United
• Matthew’s Day Off: Or, Why 2012 Super Bowl Ads Drowning in Nostalgia
• Your Turn: Felix Romney
• Race, Gender, Sexuality, and Acceptance in One Photo
• Combining Children with Scare Tactics in Georgia’s Anti-Obesity Campaign