At the top of this page you can see an interesting frame from our efforts to index the complete onscreen text of all 17 billion seconds of the TV News Archive. In this 2009 MSNBC segment, Chris Cillizza from the Washington Post is interviewed and in the background a sign hanging from the ceiling can be seen with The Washington Post's logo and website domain. Unfortunately, due to the camera angle, the sign is partially clipped and so only "ashington Post" and "ngtonpost.co" are visible. A typical American would likely be able to instantly fill in the rest without even thinking about it and "see" the sign in its completion. Instead, OCR software only recognizes the text as it stands in the frame, transcribing only those letters and words that are visible, such that the extracted text reads "ashington Post" and "gtonpost.co". Indeed, this is no different than what a person unfamiliar with American media would be able to read from the image.
Unfortunately, it means that keyword indexing would miss this frame when a user searches for all onscreen mentions of the "Washington Post" or "washingtonpost.com", since OCR only transcribes the literal text from the screen and keyword indexing only returns matches that exactly match the user's keyword(s) (though modern embedding and other semantic search techniques would likely enable this frame to be returned).
Interestingly, when we provide the OCR output to LMM Gemini 2.5 Pro and ask it to "correct and complete" the text for us, it is able to restore the text to its complete form, suggesting that LMMs could be used to enhance keyword indexing of OCR text (though with the danger of hallucination: indeed, Gemini incorrectly estimates the screen layout of the frame).
Below is the text that GCP's Cloud Vision API extracted from this frame:
HARDBALL LIVE ashington Post gtonpost.co I msnbc POLITICS FIX
We then provide it to Gemini 2.5 Pro using the following prompt:
Below is the OCR'd text from a frame of a 2009 MSNBC television news broadcast. It may have OCR error and may be truncated where the text might have scrolled off the edge of the frame. Can you correct and complete it for me? OCR TEXT:
Thinking output:
Here's my thinking process for correcting and completing the OCR'd text:
- Analyze the Input: I examine the provided OCR text:
- HARDBALL – Looks like a show title. Seems correct.
- LIVE – Standard TV graphic element. Seems correct.
- ashington Post – Clearly missing the first letter. Likely "Washington Post".
- gtonpost.co – Looks like a website address, missing the beginning and end. Likely related to the "Washington Post". Should be washingtonpost.com.
- I msnbc – Looks like a logo or branding. The "I" might be an OCR error or part of a larger logo. msnbc is the channel name. It's more likely just msnbc or msnbc.com.
- POLITICS – Standard news category. Seems correct.
- FIX – Could be part of a segment title, like "Politics Fix". Seems correct in isolation, but context might suggest more.
- Identify Common TV News Graphic Elements: I draw on my knowledge of typical news broadcast layouts:
- Show Title: Often prominent, usually top left or center. (HARDBALL)
- LIVE Bug: Indicates a live broadcast, often near the show title or a corner. (LIVE)
- Network Logo: Usually in a corner. (msnbc)
- Website/Source Citation: Often shown when discussing specific articles or partners. (Washington Post, washingtonpost.com)
- Segment/Topic: Describes the current discussion. (POLITICS, FIX)
- Time/Date/Location: Sometimes present, but not in this OCR.
- Lower Thirds: Bars at the bottom with names, titles, or headlines (not explicitly present in this OCR, but the elements might be part of one).
- Contextualize with "Hardball" and MSNBC (2009):
- "Hardball" was a long-running political talk show on MSNBC, hosted by Chris Matthews until 2020.
- MSNBC frequently discusses politics.
- The Washington Post is a common source for political news and analysis, and partnerships between news outlets (like MSNBC and WaPo) were common.
- "The Fix" was a well-known political blog/column at The Washington Post, often written by Chris Cillizza around that time. It's highly plausible that a segment on "Hardball" would be called "Politics Fix" or reference "The Fix" from the Washington Post.
- Correct Specific OCR Errors:
- ashington Post -> Washington Post (Add the missing 'W')
- gtonpost.co -> washingtonpost.com (Add 'washin' at the beginning and 'm' at the end; .co is less common for major US news sites than .com).
- I msnbc -> msnbc (The 'I' is likely an artifact or misinterpretation. MSNBC's branding usually just features the letters or the peacock logo + letters). It could also be part of msnbc.com, often displayed as a website.
- Synthesize and Structure: Now I arrange the corrected elements logically, mimicking a typical TV news graphic layout.
- HARDBALL (Show Title)
- LIVE (Broadcast status)
- msnbc (Network) or msnbc.com (Network website – common graphic element)
- Washington Post (Source/Partner)
- washingtonpost.com (Source Website)
- POLITICS FIX (Segment Title – combining POLITICS and FIX makes strong contextual sense given the WaPo reference and the commonality of "The Fix" blog).
- Refine and Format: Present the corrected text clearly, explaining the rationale. Acknowledge ambiguities (like msnbc vs. msnbc.com).
- Initial thought: Maybe list them separately?
HARDBALL LIVE Washington Post washingtonpost.com msnbc POLITICS FIX - Better thought: Combine "POLITICS" and "FIX" as it's almost certainly a segment title. Group related items. Present it more like a potential layout.
- Final Output Structure:
- State the likely corrections clearly.
- Present the corrected text, possibly formatted to suggest a screen layout.
- Explain the reasoning, especially for "Politics Fix" and the website corrections.
- Initial thought: Maybe list them separately?
- Self-Correction/Review: Does this make sense for a 2009 MSNBC political show? Yes. Are the corrections plausible OCR errors? Yes (missing letters, truncated endings). Is the combination "Politics Fix" logical given the Washington Post context? Yes, highly likely referencing their blog "The Fix". Is the formatting clear? Yes.
Model output:
Okay, based on the typical layout and content of MSNBC graphics from that era, especially for the show "Hardball," here's the most likely corrected and completed text:
Corrected & Completed Text:
- HARDBALL (Show Title)
- LIVE (Broadcast Status)
- Washington Post (Likely source/partner attribution)
- washingtonpost.com (Website for the source)
- msnbc or msnbc.com (Network branding/website)
- POLITICS FIX (Likely segment title, referencing The Washington Post's popular "The Fix" political blog/column)
Explanation of Corrections:
- ashington Post -> Washington Post: Corrected the common OCR error of missing the initial capital letter.
- gtonpost.co -> washingtonpost.com: Completed the likely website address for The Washington Post. .com is standard, and the beginning was truncated.
- I msnbc -> msnbc or msnbc.com: The "I" is likely an OCR artifact. The graphic would typically show the network logo/name (msnbc) or its website (msnbc.com).
- POLITICS and FIX -> POLITICS FIX: These were likely part of the same segment title. "The Fix" was a very well-known political analysis section/blog of The Washington Post (often written by Chris Cillizza around that time), making "Politics Fix" a highly probable segment title on a political show like Hardball when referencing the Post.
So, the graphic likely indicated a live segment on Hardball, possibly titled "Politics Fix," featuring information or analysis from The Washington Post / washingtonpost.com.
Running a second time we get thinking output:
Here's my thinking process for correcting and completing the OCR'd text:
- Analyze the Input: I see the following pieces of text:
- HARDBALL
- LIVE
- ashington Post
- gtonpost.co
- I msnbc
- POLITICS
- FIX
- Identify the Context: The prompt explicitly states this is from a 2009 MSNBC television news broadcast. This is crucial information. MSNBC often displays its own logo, the name of the show, whether it's live, and sometimes partner information or topic slugs. The year 2009 helps anchor the likely visual style and potential partnerships.
- Process Each Line/Element:
- HARDBALL: This looks like a complete and correct word. It's a well-known MSNBC show hosted by Chris Matthews during that era. This is almost certainly the show's title displayed prominently.
- LIVE: This is a standard indicator on news broadcasts. It looks correct.
- ashington Post: This is clearly a partial word. The context (news, politics) strongly suggests "Washington Post". The 'W' is missing.
- gtonpost.co: This looks like the end of a URL associated with the previous line. Combining it with the corrected "Washington Post", the likely URL is washingtonpost.com. The 'washin' part is missing, and the '.m' is missing from '.co'.
- I msnbc: The 'I' seems out of place. msnbc is the network name. News broadcasts almost always display the network logo. It's highly probable this should be the MSNBC logo or the text msnbc. The 'I' could be an OCR error for the vertical line in the old MSNBC peacock logo, or just a stray character misinterpreted by the OCR. Given the context, simply msnbc or MSNBC (often capitalized) is the most likely intended text.
- POLITICS: This is a standard news topic category. Looks correct.
- FIX: This is a bit ambiguous on its own. However, "The Politics Fix" was a well-known blog/column associated with The Washington Post, often written by Chris Cillizza around that time. Given the proximity to "Washington Post" and "POLITICS", it's extremely likely this is part of that specific title.
- Synthesize and Structure: Now I need to put these corrected elements together in a plausible layout, reflecting how TV news graphics typically look.
- Show Title: HARDBALL (Likely prominent, maybe top left or center).
- Live Indicator: LIVE (Often near the show title or network logo).
- Network Logo/Name: msnbc or MSNBC (Usually in a corner, often bottom right).
- Partner/Source Info: The Washington Post and washingtonpost.com. These often appear together, perhaps as a source attribution or part of a segment title.
- Topic Slug: POLITICS or maybe combined with FIX as THE POLITICS FIX.
- Refine Based on Common Layouts:
- HARDBALL and LIVE often appear together.
- The Washington Post mention and the POLITICS FIX likely relate to a specific segment or blog being discussed. Often, news channels will display the source/partner name and their website.
- The MSNBC logo is usually standard branding.
- POLITICS could be a general lower-third topic, or part of THE POLITICS FIX title.
- Consider Potential Combinations and Formats:
- Option 1 (Separate Elements):
HARDBALL LIVE The Washington Post washingtonpost.com POLITICS [msnbc logo](The FIX might just be a cut-off word or less likely).
- Option 2 (Combined Segment Title):
HARDBALL LIVE THE POLITICS FIX The Washington Post / washingtonpost.com [msnbc logo]This incorporates FIX more meaningfully. "The Politics Fix" was The Washington Post's political blog. This seems very plausible for a political segment on Hardball.
- Option 3 (Closer to OCR Structure):
HARDBALL LIVE The Washington Post POLITICS washingtonpost.com FIX [msnbc logo]This layout seems less typical for a clean graphic, but reflects the OCR order somewhat. It still requires correcting ashington to Washington, gtonpost.co to washingtonpost.com, and adding The before Washington Post and potentially before POLITICS FIX.
- Option 1 (Separate Elements):
- Select the Most Likely Correction: Option 2 seems the most coherent and contextually appropriate. "The Politics Fix" was a prominent WaPo feature relevant to a show like Hardball. Displaying the source name (The Washington Post) and its URL (washingtonpost.com) along with the specific blog/segment title (THE POLITICS FIX) and the network branding (msnbc/MSNBC) fits standard news graphics practices. The LIVE indicator is also standard.
- Final Output Formulation: Based on the analysis, I will present the corrected text clearly, explaining the reasoning for each correction and the likely intended full text/elements shown on screen. I should explicitly mention the corrections made (e.g., adding "W", completing the URL, adding "The"). I will also format it clearly.
- Correct ashington Post -> The Washington Post (Added "W" and "The")
- Correct gtonpost.co -> washingtonpost.com (Added "washin" and "m")
- Interpret I msnbc -> msnbc or MSNBC (Removed OCR artifact "I")
- Combine POLITICS and FIX -> THE POLITICS FIX (Interpreted as the specific WaPo blog/column title, added "THE")
- Keep HARDBALL and LIVE as they are likely correct.
Therefore, the likely on-screen elements were:
- HARDBALL (Show Title)
- LIVE (Live Indicator)
- The Washington Post (Partner/Source Name)
- washingtonpost.com (Partner/Source URL)
- msnbc or MSNBC (Network Identifier/Logo)
- THE POLITICS FIX (Segment Title / Blog Name – combining POLITICS and FIX)
The exact layout isn't recoverable from the OCR text alone, but these are the corrected and likely complete text elements.
Model output:
Okay, let's break down the OCR text and reconstruct the likely on-screen graphics based on the context (MSNBC, 2009, Hardball, Politics).
Analysis of OCR Text:
- HARDBALL: Correct. This is the name of the show.
- LIVE: Correct. Standard indicator for a live broadcast.
- ashington Post: OCR error. Missing the 'W'. Should be Washington Post. Often preceded by "The".
- gtonpost.co: OCR error and truncation. This is the end of the URL for the Washington Post. Should be washingtonpost.com.
- I msnbc: OCR error. The 'I' is likely an artifact. It should be the network identifier msnbc or MSNBC.
- POLITICS: Correct. A common topic slug.
- FIX: Likely part of a specific segment title or blog name, often associated with The Washington Post. "The Fix" or "The Politics Fix" was a prominent political blog run by Chris Cillizza at The Washington Post during that era.
Correction and Completion:
Based on the analysis and common news graphic layouts from that time, the corrected and likely complete text elements on the screen were:
- HARDBALL (Show Title)
- LIVE (Status Indicator)
- The Washington Post (Partner/Source Name)
- washingtonpost.com (Partner/Source URL)
- msnbc or MSNBC (Network Identifier/Logo)
- THE POLITICS FIX (Segment Title / Blog Name – this combines "POLITICS" and "FIX" into the known Washington Post entity)
Possible On-Screen Layout (Conceptual):
While the exact layout can't be determined definitively, it might have looked something like this:
+---------------------------------------------------+
| HARDBALL | LIVE |
| |
| <Video Feed> |
| |
| |
+---------------------------------------------------+
| THE POLITICS FIX | msnbc
| The Washington Post | washingtonpost.com | (logo)
+---------------------------------------------------+In summary, the corrected and completed text components are:
- HARDBALL
- LIVE
- The Washington Post
- washingtonpost.com
- msnbc (or MSNBC)
- THE POLITICS FIX