Consider new media content as distributed, alike, but with different functional aims. If the content is textually similar, but with different images, to what extent is the effect of the textual content changed. It may depend on the nature of the production of the content.
Consider streams of alike content, that change function as they converge to the source (for example, the creative idea that engendered them). As desired function changes how much is the effect changed. There may be a disjoint between the effect and the structure within which the content is to function. So in terms of images, different images may not change the effect, if images are thus considered as something added to the content, to make an effect. But it may be possible to use images in such a way as they lessen this disjoint.
However, this kind of disjoint may not necessarily be detrimental, it could be enhancing to content - but not necessarily to function. The function of each stream is considered to be overridden by the content itself. Content can make use of seemingly hostile landscapes and indeed turn them into a tool for it - the content itself potentially has an enhanced framework (including images) within which to represent. And in doing so creates a less static but perhaps more powerful effect.
The core of this would perhaps need to be content made for its own sake, as there is perhaps a strong persistance in such content, that is, issues in detaching elements of content, distributing it in structures, lessen. It may be necessary to have a stable source, such as a creative aim driving this. I say stable here, because of a sense of creative content as having a stronger persistence in its existence.
New media text encompasses a number of functional aims, including just creating for the sake of it and wanting a specific effect, preferably engineered as tightly as possible. The task then, of using images may be harder than it may seem. In some cases at least there needs to be a congruence of the image with the source from which the text emerged as well. Practically, a creative origin for both image and text and presumably a similar one. But for some functional aims, that is not perhaps such an issue, as the function and its context may override the content, but images here may help also in less clear cut cases.
Potentially, here is a way of looking at the way new media can meld creativity and functional aims, and do it of necessity, but do it in variated ways. New media has a potential for unleashing the power of shades of meaning, but whether it is used that way is another matter. So maybe ideal new media content, by its nature, has a variation of functionality. In this case, then images need to be chosen which can adapt to such variation, and where it is possible to do so, enhance as well.
