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Viral

Images the world has shared millions of times, and the verified context that usually gets lost along the way.

Taylor Swift photographed at the MTV Video Music Awards in September 2009

Fifteen Seconds at the 2009 VMAs — and Everything the Record Actually Shows Since

Kanye West took the microphone from a nineteen-year-old on live television in September 2009. What followed — an apology, a reconciliation, a song, a recorded phone call and a leak — is one of the most litigated pop-culture disputes of the century.

30 August 20265 min read

The fully illuminated Earth photographed from space, showing Africa, Antarctica and the Arabian peninsula

Viral

The Most Reproduced Photograph in History Was Taken Through a Spacecraft Window

Apollo 17's crew had the Sun behind them and a hand-held Hasselblad. The result went round the world before the astronauts did — and it is free for anyone to use.

19 August 20262 min read

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Fifteen Seconds at the 2009 VMAs — and Everything the Record Actually Shows Since

The Most Reproduced Photograph in History Was Taken Through a Spacecraft Window

One photograph, one story, every Friday