FROM THE SENIOR ADViSOR
"From The Senior Advisor" is a periodic column authored by RDML Craig Quigley, USN (Ret). This column presents information pertinent to the MPACOMVC mission, which is to provide public affairs and communication support among MOAA affiliates across all media platforms.
From the MPACOMVC Senior Advisor April 2026
The Power of Imagery in Telling Your Story
We’ve all heard the saying, “a picture is worth a thousand words,” and the phrase stays popular because it’s true! Whether it’s still photography, video or even an artist’s sketch, imagery is a powerful tool in helping you tell your story.
If you look at any major newspaper from the early 1900’s, there are veryfew images used. These newspapers were almost exclusively text, with only anoccasional image or sketch used. Indeed, the ads included in the paper used more imagery than the news stories themselves! But as we moved further intothe 20th century, photographs, charts of all kinds and other forms of imagerybecame more and more prevalent in daily newspapers across the world. ThinkUSA Today! Fast forward to 2026 and it’s inconceivable to think of a major newsstory in any medium without heavy use of imagery. TV exists at all because of imagery. Any web-based news outlet uses imagery extensively. But why is this so powerful?
Because imagery “takes you there.” Just try describing a house fire onlocal TV news without the use of video. A car show? Can’t do it. Explaininghow an internal combustion engine works? Nope. You get the idea. Knowing this, how can imagery help you tell the story of the good works done by yourChapter? You will want the community to know about your help to veterans,about your support of military families, about any sort of community service that your Chapter takes on. By all means you need the printed word to be a centerpiece of your efforts, but adding photos or video to the text helps convey the impact of what you’ve just done. Imagery adds a human touch to everything and amplifies the impact of your Chapter’s efforts.
Pulitzer-level photography or video skills aren’t necessary; today’s smart phones are of sufficient quality to provide superb still images and “good enough” video to support your web site and perhaps local news outlets. You impact those pictured in the imagery, Chapter members who can take pride in their Chapter’s good works, and community leaders who appreciate what you’ve done for their fellow citizens.
So the next time your Chapter does something noteworthy, make sure somebody is grabbing their smart phone and capturing imagery to record the event. The impact will be much greater!
Senior Advisor Archives
Click on below icons to view Senior Advisor archives