Go Here Now: The New York Times Brings Its Image Archive Back To Life On Tumblr

Photos from around the world being sorted in the New York Times' archive, a.k.a. the "morgue." (via The Lively Morgue)

"Oh super, another photo blog," you might be thinking as we (strongly) urge you to check out The Lively Morgue, which debuted last month. But hold up—this is not your run-of-the-mill, kaleidoscopic-oveload of information-style-Tumblr blog. The Lively Morgue was just aunched by the New York Times and it's a extraordinary glimpse into the newspaper's century-spanning pictorial archive.

The "morgue" comes from the long-standing nickname for that archive. "Explanations differ as to the origins of that name, but it's safe to say that the clippings were originally biographical and kept close at hand in case a subject dropped dead around deadline, requiring an instant obituary," the Times explains. The "lively," we imagine, refers to the cavalcade of exciting images that they are bringing back to life.

Of course the photographs are amazing to look at, but our favorite element is actually being able to flip each image over and see the reserve side; where photographers, journalists and editors jotted, typed, pasted and stamped each print with relevant information, before the days of computers and digital files.

The Times' collection is so vast that they've been unable to zero in on an exact number: 

How many? We don’t know. Our best guess is five million to six million prints and contact sheets (each sheet, of course, representing many discrete images) and 300,000 sacks of negatives, ranging in format size from 35 millimeter to 5 by 7 inches — at least 10 million frames in all. The picture archive also includes 13,500 DVDs, each storing about 4.7 gigabytes worth of imagery.

The Lively Morgue will feature a few photographs each week, since posting the entire Times archive would be quite a task. Even at 10 posts a day, they estimate that the print collection alone wouldn't be finished until the year 3935.

-- John Ruscher

Call for Entries // The Tribeca Film Institute New Media Fund Supports Innovative Cross-Platform Storytelling

18 Days in Egypt, which launched this week on the one-year anniversary of the beginning of the Egyptian uprising, captures that historic moment throught an interactive collaboration that brings together citizen journalism and multimedia. This is the kind of innovative project that the Tribeca Film Institute is supporting with its newest program, the TFI New Media Fund.

"The ultimate goal of the New Media Fund is to push the boundaries of storytelling and take the audience beyond traditional screens," says 3rd Ward member Opeyemi Olukemi, who is part of TFI's Digital Initiatives team. 18 Days in Egypt was one of the first six projects funded through the program last year, along with others such as Map Your World, which encourages children to help improve their communities by mapping, tracking and sharing the changes that they are making. There's also an interactive online companion to the documentary film The Tillman Story.

"The Fund aims to support non-fictional, social issue media projects that engage audiences and challenge them to explore these stories in an innovative approach," Olukemi adds. Think you've got a project that fits those criteria? TFI will be accepting submissions for the fund through March 6, and this summer four to eight projects will be awarded between $50,000 and $100,000.

Olukemi recommends starting with an idea that inspires you. "I would advise each applicant to find an issue that is important to them—whether it be human engagement with wildlife (NFB's BEAR 71), black male identity in America (Question Bridge), or city life in dense spaces (NFB's Out My Window)—and think of how their community can explore it through a different fashion," she says. "Think beyond the film screen and start creating what you wish was being done!"

For more information, check out the TFI New Media Fund Wiki or get in touch at newmediafund[at]tribecafilminstitute.org

-- John Ruscher