Virginian-Pilot Front Page

I came across this blog about newspaper design while surfing the web for a newspaper front page that I could critique. Although the most of the comments on the blog are not critical nor insightful, I thought that the blog did offer useful links regarding news design and even included a list of today's major newspaper front pages.

One front page that caught my attention was today's Virginian Pilot. I thought that their front page had an organized layout, just enough white space surrounding the text and displayed effective photo/story pairings.

One photo in particular that I found highly effective was the dominant photo of cigarettes. The photo element was symmetrical, understandable, easy to follow and, most importantly, illustrated a main point of the story. The use of numbers and an equation in the graphic was a creative approach that points to the increase in price of cigarettes as described in the story. Also, the graphic was paired with a catchy, rhyming headline, which is especially effective and eye-catching for the reader.

The designer made a good decision in choosing to include the entire red cross in the background when cropping the the photo that lies above the newspaper fold. Not only does the red color of the cross captivate the reader's eye, but it also gives the photo meaning and signals to readers that the story involves medical aid.

Overall, I thought the Pilot front page's front page was designed well. They displayed a clear connection between all the graphic elements and their accompanied stories, which made it organized and easy to follow.




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