Best of the Web

• Posted By: Kathy M.Y. Pyon
• Posted On: 3:14 p.m. | May 25, 2012

“Saving Aesha”

Remember that compelling Time magazine cover of the young woman who had been tortured by her Taliban husband and in-law family?  This short video is a look at her life today. It’s a story of hope.  I’m glad that someone followed up on this; sometimes I worry that we engage in these stories and then never know what happens later.  It’s not realistic to expect a follow-up on every story, so this is an admirable effort.

CNN Photos

I first looked at this gallery of London’s Soho district  by photographer Anders Petersen without reading the story, and I thought the photos were from a time past; actually, they are from last year.  The quality and mood of the photos are splendid. They capture the place in a very distinctive context that isn’t clean but still has an essence of romance.

The CNN Photos blog is really simple; the grouping of compelling photos works well with the short story.

Ken Burns on the art of storytelling

This short piece on Ken Burns, the documentary filmmaker, is nice;  his words on the motivation for his work are really personal.

Burning Man, day and night

Here’s some mesmerizing eye candy from last year’s weeklong festival in the desert. The filming is elegant and unexpected for the subject matter.  I liked the pace and the muted tones. I only wish it had another layer of storytelling to it — perhaps some ambient sounds or  interviews.

Photos, clockwise from  top left: screen grab from “Saving Aesha”; a  photograph of Soho by Anders Petersen; a screen grab from “Burning Man: Rites of Passage – Day”; Ken Burns.