Visual Plagiarism

Vita.mn, like most faux-alternative weeklies produced by dailies, tries desperately to be hip. But creativity is not its strong suit: most issues feature re-packaged content from the Strib's Source section, seasoned with a few cringe-worthy stabs at edginess.

This week's edition is no exception. Look no further than the cover story: "Sex al fresco," a paean to making whoopee in the great outdoors. After reminding us that Minnesota is cold in the winter time, author Alexis McKinnis finally gets to the point: "So is it any surprise than an unscientific poll of Vita.mn readers revealed that we also like to have sex outside? Of course not."

While the prose feels about as creative as the missionary position, the cover is an even worse example of phoning it in. Although the painting of ladybugs humping at first seems clever, if you plug the headline—"Summer Love"—into Google, you'll find the artist's obvious inspiration: a photograph of ladybugs humping posted on flickr.com, under the name—wait for it—"Summer love!"