Extending Link Functionality – hack or plugin?

Hey folks – I’m looking to resolve an issue with my link categories. Basically, I want to dislay a pic, a title, and a short description (identical to what you see in the sidebar of http://interactive.usc.edu/). I’ve tried working with the exisiting link category features, and it doesn’t seem to do what I need (though I may be missing something). Whenever I include a pic, the link name disapears. Is there a hack or a plugin that would allow me to better control and customize the link categories, and the links therein?

Thanks – Ethan