ATTRACTIVESS is a cultural value. It is important in the clothes we buy and wear, in our furniture, in cosmetics and any number of life habits or activities. Physical appearance, however, shouldn't be our only consideration in relationships, even thought it has importance in that it enhances comfort.
Newspapers are no different.
Who or what is attractive, or what characteristics make something or someone attractive, is open to debate. One arguable characteristic in attractiveness is personality, and in late January readers were asked to describe the personality of The Cavalier Daily.
Readers were asked if the student newspaper was experienced or amateurish, energetic or flat, creative or dull, friendly or aloof, resourceful or by the book, trustworthy or conniving, or knowledgeable or clueless. A future column was promised to compare, contrast and write about the newspaper's personality from your, and my, perspective.
It won't be hard today to summarize reader thoughts as only one person responded, with mixed comments. That might say something about the level of student engagement with the newspaper, or a lack of a time commitment to interact.
The brave soul who responded said the newspaper was a boring but attractive male, tall, thin and reserved, serious, trusting and confident, but secretive, reserved and traditional.
I have some thoughts, but I offer them with reservation: I don't live in Virginia, so my review of the newspaper is only online, except for occasional care packages of the print product. That makes it a bit more difficult to get a clear feel for personality or attractiveness.
Still, here are some observations based on a review of two weeks of newspapers.
Design, the artistic and creative judgments an editor or designer uses so that newspaper pages are attractive and readable, has room for improvement at The Cavalier Daily.
While content ultimately keeps a reader coming back, design, or appearance, can initially attract him or her. The best-designed newspapers have several elements that make them stand out, including good organization, an uncluttered look, quality photography or graphic elements, contract in shape-size-weight-direction of elements, unity, typeface consistency and balance.
Unfortunately, some work needs to be done, at least in a review of 14 front pages. A more pleasing personality or appearance of the newspaper could occur through a better mix of vertical and horizontal design elements. News could be better organized so readers have a clearer understanding of what is generally the most to least important news and information on a page.
Confusing impressions or connotations are sometimes evident, such as a feature article being presented as a breaking-news story. And stylistic devises could be used to set something important apart in more dramatic fashion.
Here are some additional specific comments to be considered:
Photos: In a story about Jefferson's slave records, a picture of Monticello was used; it did little to help tell the story. Head shots are routinely poorly cropped. Far too many static photos of buildings, or people standing at podiums or lecterns, are used as dominate art. Grip-and-grins and stand-them-up-against-the-wall photos are overused. There are too few dominate photos (most, sometimes four or more on a page, are all about the same size, fighting with each other, making it impossible for the reader to know what is most important).
Headlines: There is a tendency for size and scope similarity; most are one or two lines of bold type with one or two lines of an italic readout. Too many are label heads, saying very little (Love your body week begins). Tomb-stoning or bumping multiple-column headlines are hard to read. Make sure headlines, graphics and stories agree (Headline: Pancakes for Parkinson's raises $15k; Graphic:$45k).
General: An attractive color palette should be adopted, eliminating the dark and inconsistent gradients and shades of green, yellow, blue, red, etc. Less is more when it comes to cutouts; there is a tendency to cut the top of heads out of photos and mortise captions and headlines into art elements.
Having said all that, The Cavalier Daily isn't ugly with a rotten personality. It is, however, a somewhat male-oriented, gangly 20 to 21-year-old, struggling with it choice of clothing, hairstyle and mannerisms as it matures through the growing process.
John Irby is The Cavalier Daily's ombudsman. He can be contacted at ombud@cavalierdaily.com
Read More
WILLIAMS: Donald Trump will be a threat to student loan forgiveness
By Ryan Williams | 5 hours agoTo be sure, this is not a problem of the University’s making. Nevertheless, understanding the uncertainty of financial accessibility in education, the University must step up to the plate.
PATEL: Personal development courses support students beyond the gradebook
By Heer Patel | 5 days agoThe University must rethink its approach to education beyond traditional major-specific requirements and mandate personal development courses.
EDITORIAL: Commercialization threatens U.Va.’s educational mission
By Editorial Board | 6 days agoAfter all, measuring the University’s worth in terms of accrued capital, operational efficiency and numerical rankings molds this space into just another cookie-cutter institution.
