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An editorial graphic that made me chuckle

I saw this on Charles Apple's blog. It gave me a laugh. Here's the NYT's full version.

Above the nameplate: Prime real estate

Mario Garcia tackles the question: Is the space above the nameplate sacred? He writes:

"It can be controversial, and I usually get asked that question at least twice a week somewhere in the world: How effective is it to lower the newspaper's nameplate to put something at the very top?

My response is always similar: very effective. The moment you put a promo, a photo, a story or even a variety of elements above the nameplate, those items will command great attention. It is the editor's way of saying:

Look at this. It is special."

News of the future: electronic ink

Here's a story from the New York Times that's getting some eyes:

New E-Newspaper Reader Echoes Look of the Paper

Check it out.

Nice work Lewiston

It's always a nice surprise when I'm browsing Newseum thumbnails and I click on something striking to get a better look -- and it turns out to be a newspaper I'm familiar with. Having gone to school in Pullman, Wash., Lewiston was practically down the road 40 minutes. I've see the inside of their newsroom. And I was pleased to see this gorgeous play of such an eye-catching photo.

Rolling Stone is changing shape

Rolling Stone Magazine is cutting down from it's approximately 10" by 12" to a more standard 8.5" by 11". In a refreshing twist, it's not a cost-cutting measure. They are going to heavier paper with a glossy finish, adding 16 to 20 pages and changing from a saddle-stitched binding to a glued perfect bound format.

Why?

The New York Times reports that magazines are becoming increasingly standardized and Rolling Stone's shape doesn't fit in standard racks. It gets pushed up, down or off to the side of displays -- away from eye level. Also, advertisers have to revise ads to fit the format, and insert ads, with scent samples for example, are especially troublesome.

Word is, the new shape with come with a redesign.

SunSentinal gets radical overhaul

Charles Apple has more images from the redesign.

He also made a funny, "Yes, that’s one word: SunSentinel. Looks like Tribune company cutbacks have finally affected punctuation. The folks in Fort Lauderdale laid off a hyphen."

this is too much

Comic Sans is an unlikely hero in this CollegeHumor original: Font Conference.

My favorite character is Futura. What's yours?

A nice 'one year later' page

Sacramento to launch redesign

Here's a peek at the new look. And here, is what the editor has to say about it.

Late page of the week

I loved this Fresno page from July 8, but failed to post it until now. But here it is:

Newspaper cuts: a visual representation

Erica Smith, an excellent news designer at the St. Louis Dispatch has mapped 2008 newspaper cuts, totally nearly 6,000 layoffs and buyouts. CHECK IT OUT

This is a grim report, but it has a lot more impact than listing buyout and layoff announcements one at a time. It appears she updates the map ... well, frequently.

As Andrew Zahler of the Spokesman-Review points out:

"First, this map is more affecting than the daily reports on Romanesko or a simple number. Which is another example of why multimedia just makes information crackle."

Train yourself

I recommend downloading these free handouts on design from SND. There's 17 worksheets available for what they are calling a limited time. So get them while the getting is good here.

And now for some white space

Here's my page of the week:

Oh great, now anyone can create a Comic Sans

New York Times tech writer Peter Wayner published this article "Down with Helvetica, design your own font" this week.

"Before the personal computer, most people were oblivious to fonts. Some may have recognized Courier and Elite on the I.B.M. Selectric typewriter ball. Then word processing programs offered a hundred or more fonts, from Arial to Wingdings. More were offered in software packages and on the Internet. Now, many people can recognize fonts by name. Indeed, a documentary about typography and one of the most familiar typefaces, “Helvetica,” played to sellout crowds at film festivals."

He also writes about this cool Web site, fontstruct where anyone can try their hand at font-ography.

Black is the new black in Orlando's redesign

Everyone in the design world is buzzing about Orlando Sentinel's redesign.

• Watch this flash presentation on their site showing what has changed and why.
• Charles Apple shares his thoughts.
• The Wall Street Journal discusses the business side of the Tribune Co.'s plan to rollout redesigns of all it's newspapers.
• Redesign consultant Alan Jacobson from Brass Tacks is not pleased.
• Redesign consultant Mario Garcia says black is the new black on the nameplate.
  
• And of course Orland's alt. weekly, aptly named Orlando Weekly, took a punch at the redesign comparing it to USA Today.

And for those of you who just want to look at the pictures. Here's some of the section fronts from Sunday's launch.

Looking good, Rocky Mountain News

McClatchy slashes 1,400 jobs in cost-cutting drive

By SETH SUTEL

The Associated Press

NEW YORK (AP) — Newspaper publisher McClatchy Co. is slashing 1,400 jobs, or 10 percent of its work force, as part of an accelerating drive to cut costs as advertising revenues dwindle, the company announced Monday. see the full story

paper is money

Rick Edmonds has a bleak report on the increasing cost of newsprint on Poynter's The Biz blog.

Higher Newsprint Prices Are Up Next

"NEW YORK -- The big picture for newspaper economics has been grim for some time, but this week's bi-annual meeting with investors and analysts highlighted a nasty mini-trend in the offing. After several years of stability, newsprint prices are headed up sharply, probably by about 10 perfect."

Dallas Morning News launches free Briefing

It's free, condensed version of the news aimed at non-subscribers called Briefing. Here's the story.