This four-page introduction to Wired provides a visual interpretation of a key idea from the issue. The quote that was given to us describes how to fight a diffuse network of opponents like Al Qaeda. As a metaphor for the network, we chose a swarm of yellowjackets—attacking on the first spread, and harmlessly isolated on the second. We hired the English firm Lost in Space to illustrate them using three-dimensional rendering software.

We simultaneously attempted a photographic version using real bees. The bees refused to pose as dramatically as the computer-generated yellowjackets, and that version was quickly scrapped.

“We’re used to seeing overdone graphics in Wired, and suddenly there’s this single, huge image. It’s a four-page Op-Ed piece, and it looks so menacing.”