Where are the Vermonters?

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(This is amazing!

Campaign for Vermont webpage is loaded with out of state stock images. Now that is transparent.Thanks for digging.

  – promoted by BP)

Curious to know who some of those happy people are on the Campaign for Vermont Prosperity’s website, I started doing some image sleuthing.

(yes, I know stock images are used all the time for this sort of thing… but I was curious…)

Starting on the ‘Mission’ page.

http://www.campaignforvermont….

The kids using a laptop in a verdant Vermont setting?

No, they seem to come from ‘Michigan Portfolios’, a writing project:

http://www.michiganportfolios….

(and it looks like they edited out some of the other kids… maybe that original image was just a little too diverse?)

Surely the constrcution guy working on framing what looks like a house, he must be a hearty Vermonter?

No, he comes from a German website discussing the pros and cons of materials used for ‘carports’:

http://www.gartenwelt.de/artik…

How about those friendly folks looking at plans?

Maybe some Pizzagalli construction employees?

No, they show up on several EU sites about safety:

http://www.osima.eu/kompetenz….

After the jump: stock winter walk, stock woodworker, stock tractor, etc.

Moving on to the ‘Who we are Page’:

http://www.campaignforvermont….

The folks out for a winter walk? Maybe at Shelburne Farms?

They show up on Target (maybe some subliminal work going on here to bring a Target to Willison?)

http://www.target.com/p/Elite-…

And Weightwatchers:

http://www.weightwatchers.ca/u…

But wait, the woodworker, surely a Vermonter in support of this ‘Campaign’?

He shows up on a few sites originating out of China, and then pops up on the town of Rocklin California’s permit page:

http://www.rocklin.ca.us/gover…

What about that iconic tractor in the sunset on the ‘Electricity and Energy’ page?

http://www.campaignforvermont….

Whoa, thats from the BBC’s ‘Farming Today’ podcast (and a few other hits for a tractor repair place)

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programme…

And it goes on.

You see where I’m going.

Yes, I know its a pretty common thing to see ‘stock’ images in websites like this…

But come on… Campaign for Vermont Prosperity?

Couldn’t we hire a few Vermont photographers to snap some pictures of people who believe in the mission? Maybe some ‘real people’? Of the dozen or so images I reverse Googled, I didn’t find one ‘Vermonter’.

Wonder if a local web developer got the work to do the site…

17 thoughts on “Where are the Vermonters?”

  2. Excellent job.

    At the bottom of each CFV(P) webpage, they claim copyright to “all contents.” Wonder if that includes the stock photos.  

  4. on a PDF with screen caps, I’ll post a download link as soon as I can.

    I’ll send it on to VT Digger and 7Days…

    Anyone of the mods have contacts there? Shoot me an email @ my contact info.

  6. There is ONE photo that IS Vermont!

    Look down the right column, the ‘Join’ photo is of Bruce Lisman and the credit is:

    VT DIgger / Josh Larkin!

    Now what I want to know is if they licensed the image, or just used it.

    * * * * * *

    Next I went to the Contact Us page and then looked at the source code.  In the ‘send us an email’, the form code is directed to the Burlington company fourninedesign.com.  Their client list includes Phil Scott for Gov and Pomerleau Real Estate.

  7. I just added a “jump” in the middle of this diary, so it occupies a bit less space on the homepage.

    As for spreading the word… would the Dems be interested? I’d also suggest Andy Bromage at Seven Days; this is right up their alley.  

  9. First to qualify: I am not a plant for CFV, or a troller on liberal blogs. My political leanings are definitely liberal. However I find the issue you are taking with the CFV website to be trivial. Designers purchase stock photography all the time to be used on the web and in print. I am sure you could find “non-Vermonter” stock photos on all kinds of sites about Vermont. I would be more impressed if you spent your time analyzing this organization’s intent, policies and practices.  

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