Tuesday, January 31, 2006
Rumble for the Jumble
When we launched the redesign of The Spokesman-Review on Monday we knew one thing: We would get some phone calls from people who were unhappy. Change is hard and we have come to expect a few complaints with every new design. So we were ready.The biggest source of irritation was for something we had no part in, though, namely a decision by the features editor to drop the Jumble puzzle because the providing syndicate had said it was discontinuing the popular game. Not so fast, said Spokane readers! And they were right: Another company does provide the puzzle. With some fast action, it was in the next day's newspaper and editor Steve Smith explained what happened to readers in a front-page note. Crisis averted!
We're happy to report seeing no less than five people working the puzzle at the airport this morning on our way out of town!
Monday, January 30, 2006
Spokesman-Review: First pages
Sunday, January 29, 2006
We're out, and so is the paper
Working on features pages
Things are going well. We're already working ahead on feature pages for the next week. Ralph Walter, left, and Matt Mansfield discuss color choices for the Food section cover on Sunday night. Meantime, we are about two hours away from the press starting up for the first new papers ...Wish you were here ...
MG specialist Denise M. Reagan starts her new job Monday at The Times-Union in Jacksonville, Fla., so she cannot be in Spokane for the big launch. That's a huge shame, since she was the mastermind behind the 7 redesign and has made a lot of friends in this here newsroom. Shout out to Denise from the Inland Northwest!One big week ahead
Geoff Pinnock, Spokesman-Review design guru, and Scott Goldman from MG work on the tweaks to the Super Bowl logo style for the new paper. In case you had not heard, a certain team from Washington will be playing next Sunday, so the first week of the paper's redesign will be a testing ground for the sports staff. The S-R has a reporter and columnist in Detroit this week to walk up to the big game.Pages and pizza are flying
Director of Photography Bart Rayniak peruses pages for tomorrow's first edition of the new Spokesman-Review, while Kevin Wendt of MG works on front page promos, and a celebration cake sums up the sentiment of the night.Hard at work?
MG partner Matt Mansfield puts the finishing touches on style changes for The Spokesman-Review at the Hotel Davenport in downtown Spokane. Or maybe he's just fooling around with his camera so he's ready to take some candid newsroom shots Sunday night. It's hard to tell.Tonight's the night
The redesigned Spokesman-Review rolls off the presses tonight, so expect to see us post a gallery of images after we close that first edition.We'll also try to give you a bit of background on the entire process and produce some images from the Sunday night festivities, which are rumored to include a terrific launch party for the cast and crew here in Spokane. Hoping that's not just pre-launch hype (and doubting it is).
Saturday, January 28, 2006
See the color palette and a lot more ...
We're making good on our word to have the new Spokesman-Review style guide available. A word of warning: It's a big pdf file (35mb), so you may want to go grab a cool beverage as you wait for it to download. Click here.The new book is currently in its ninth or so draft, which means it's constantly evolving (as good style guides should when new things are introduced). It's a dynamic document on the paper's intranet so anyone can see it in HTML format, or download it for a quick reference in print.
Some things, like the color palette, are new for the new design, while some bedrock philosophies are just good ideas anytime. Try these from the book's preface:
1. Simplicity. Use fewer colors, fewer typefaces, fewer secondary photos. Let the content shine through.
2. Write strong headlines and cutlines. These are the most important words in your newspaper.
3. Focus on alternative story forms. Ask, "How could we tell this story in a new way?"
4. Use white space. Let it frame your best story on the page.
The sun came out this morning ...
There is only this to say: After a particularly cold and overcast morning here in the Inland Northwest, the sun came out in all its glorious beauty a few minutes ago. We're pretty sure it's a good sign.
Enjoy this view of The Spokesman-Review building's classic tower against the expanse of big sky as proof of said sunshine.
Friday, January 27, 2006
Lots of last-minute work
Today will be packed tight with ironing out the smallest of details. We're ready, though!We finished the preview page that goes in Sunday's edition yesterday afternoon, and we saw the billboards that are going up. We'll snap a picture today and get it up here, since stuff like that's ridiculously exciting to us newspaper geeks. We even helped order the cake for Sunday's big launch party! (On the to-do list: Buy champagne for that night. Check.)
The pages for Monday's edition are in production, and we will be editing the features cover and interior this afternoon. Then Geoff Pinnock will be starting on building a centerpiece for the Jan. 30 front page, just so we are ahead of the game on that front.
Mostly, though, everyone here has a buzz of excitement about the work ahead. The editors have done an amazing job of keeping the staff informed, and the planning for this launch is among the best we have ever seen.
Thursday, January 26, 2006
Four more days ...
Met Spokane novelist Jess Walter, and his wife, Anne Windishar on Thursday for drinks. Jess is the brother of Ralph Walter, the assistant design director at The Spokesman-Review, and by all accounts also "Mr. Spokane," at least that's what the folks at the bar kept calling him.Jess, as previously mentioned on this blog, has written several novels set in Spokane (check out his stuff at www.jesswalter.com) and, as it turns out, his most recent book, "Citizen Vince" is being made into a movie, with Richard Russo writing the screenplay.
Oh, and the redesign. We're still working on it ...
Wednesday, January 25, 2006
Five days out: Confidence is high
No major glitches to report. In fact, it's too quiet as we head into the final stretch. MG partner Scott Goldman said yesterday that he's never seen a paper seem so ready. Well, let's not jinx it, Scott!Seriously, the Spokane crew has been working at a good pace to get ready, and the MG crew gets in tonight to help with the first pages for the new paper. Can you feel the excitement?
Up first: Features pages for Monday and Tuesday, which go into production tomorrow. Stay tuned!
Tuesday, January 24, 2006
Spokane's efforts at transparency
Editor Steve Smith in Spokane has been busy writing his introduction to the new design. Smith has been a strong advocate for change at the newspaper, seeing the redesign as a natural extension of his efforts to bring new consumers into the reading habit.Smith started a blog called "News is a Conversation" and has made transparency one of his major goals for how the news organization communicates, both internally and externally. That blog takes a look at everything the S-R does, including coverage of each day's news meetings so readers can weigh in before the printed paper arrives.
Check out the Spokesman-Review's efforts at www.spokesmanreview.com for a look at the award-winning efforts to engage the Inland Northwest in the community conversation.
Monday, January 23, 2006
One week to launch
Sunday, January 22, 2006
New style guide in Spokane
MG specialist Denise M. Reagan has created a new stylebook for The Spokesman-Review's redesign. The guide has already been in use in early training sessions and will be a key part of the implementation of the new design.Beyond the basic style nuts and bolts, Reagan worked closely with the design and graphics staff to make a guide that explains the paper's evolving visual journalism philosophy as it moves to the 50-inch web, changes its section cover approach and begins working with new typography and a refined color palette.
Watch for a downloadable PDF copy of the new Spokesman-Review stylebook after the Jan. 30 launch. We hope other papers can benefit from the lessons we have learned in making the guide.
Saturday, January 21, 2006
MG to work with Wick Communications
Wick Communications has selected MG Redesign to work with four of its newspapers this year. Wick, based in Sierra Vista, Ariz., is a family-owned company that publishes 41 community newspapers and runs one radio station in 12 states.
The MG team will redesign Wick newspapers in Alaska, Arizona, Louisiana, and South Dakota as part of the new contract. "We're excited to work with these newspapers," said MG partner Matt Mansfield. "The history of community involvement and coverage at Wick papers is outstanding. We're certain we can help match that great local content with great presentation."
The papers involved are:
- The Frontiersman in Wasilla, Alaska
- Today's News-Herald in Lake Havasu City, Arizona
- The News-Banner in Covington, Louisiana
- The Capital Journal in Pierre, South Dakota
Spokesman-Review launches redesign Jan. 30
We're in the final stages of helping the crew at The Spokesman-Review get ready for their redesign launch, which is slated for Jan. 30.Geoff Pinnock at the Spokesman deserves huge credit for having so much work done as we head into the final week – and for staying amazingly calm under pressure. Geoff has been the point person, handling everything from the major CCI work to the tiniest details on the crossword puzzle. We could not have asked for a better partner as we assisted his team on this redesign, so in case we forget later during the madness of the final push: Thanks, Geoff!
This week, we'll be blogging on various parts of the redesign and giving you more tidbits on what to expect as we get closer to launch day, so keep an eye on our site. MG team members Matt Mansfield, Scott Goldman and Kevin Wendt begin arriving in Washington on Wednesday to assist with the rollout. We'll each be posting dispatches on the changes in Spokane, where the newspaper last completed an overall redesign in 1994.
View Matt Mansfield's profile