John Lucaites, Author at Reading The Pictures

Disaster Focus Photo May 18, 2010

Big Oil's (Not So) Dirty Hands

We tend to think of oil as having relatively low viscosity, largely because most of us encounter it once it has been refined and readied for consumption. But here we see it as the sludge that it becomes after floating about in the gulf for several days – a...

John Lucaites Photo May 8, 2010

"Hearts and Minds" Forty Years Later

The photograph above shows a news story that doesn’t appear to have been told in the national media, notwithstanding a “sobering,” but little noted Pentagon report last week that indicated an active and growing insurgency and an Afghan government with “limited credibility.” On the other hand, it also notes...

John Lucaites Photo April 28, 2010

Transforming the Visual Trope of Totalitarianism

John Lucaites looks at the the photos of wheelchair-bound Palestinian photojournalist Osama Silwadi, and the tank as the symbol of the totalitarian state.

International Focus Photo April 22, 2010

Second Look: The Warrior Child

Lucaites: “The idealized world of youthful innocence” is a taken for granted assumption for western audiences.

Culture Focus Photo April 15, 2010

The Children’s Crusade

A poignant reminder that those who carry the weight of our military efforts too often go off to war as naïve and wide-eyed children.

Disaster Focus Photo February 4, 2008

Work With Me, Baby

Anxiety over nuclear bombs is perhaps more pronounced today than anytime since the Cold War, marked by a persistent worry about unfriendly nations, renegade scientists, and terrorists of all stripes gaining access to enriched uranium and nuclear warheads. And yet, outside of a few editorial cartoons here and there,...

John Lucaites Photo September 8, 2007

Fighting in the Trenches

What makes the image all the more disturbing is that, according to his website, Senator Isakson served in the Georgia Air National Guard from 1966 to 1972. There is no evidence that this unit ever deployed, nor is there mention of his having served in Vietnam or in combat...

Campaign '08 Photo August 11, 2007

The Fighting Romneys

This past week in Bettendorf, Iowa, Mitt Romney --the “family values” candidate who looks like Ward Cleaver -- was asked whether any of his five sons had served in the military or were planning on enlisting to fight the "war on terror."

Bush Focus Photo July 20, 2007

There To Be Seen

This picture was taken at Ft. Benning, Georgia on January 11th, the day after President Bush announced his plan for the “surge” and while meeting with military personnel and their families. The striking visual argument stands in stark contrast to the president’s mantra that “I didn’t want to be...

Campaign '08 Photo July 5, 2007

The Billary Problem

What do we do with Bill in pictures with Hillary? If Bill Clinton were as relatively lesser known or recognizable as most candidates for “First Lady,” the problem might be easier.

Campaign '08 Photo June 26, 2007

Hillary And Obama:The Issue At Hand(s)

First, my attention was called to the fact that these images are more in line with what Kress and Van Leeuwen call “demand” pictures rather than “offer” pictures.... The third cover ambiguates all of this just a bit, but the eyes are still present, and we get the sense...

John Lucaites Photo June 3, 2007

"Iwo Jima? Uh Oh!"

A couple weeks ago, John Lucaites joined our discussion thread about a photo I posted from Greensburg, Kansas. John, along with Robert Hariman, are co-authors of the newly released No Caption Needed: Iconic Photographs, Public Culture, and Liberal Democracy. Their book, and their theoretical approach to iconic photos,...