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MIDDLE
EAST IN "THE BEST OF NEWSPAPER DESIGN"
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WHEN CONTENT
MARRIES DESIGN AT GULF NEWS
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By
Anupa Kurian, Readers Editor
What does newspaper design mean? Is it the
stunningly detailed illustration, the bar graph, the recreation of
an accident or the way the stories and photos are arranged on a page?
Click
here to view Gulf News' award winning designs (pdf)
The
answer is a resounding "yes" to all. Good newspaper design is a "holistic"
marriage of all the various elements that give a reader a better experience
and sense of the newspaper.
It
is definitely not just about being attractive. It is about visual
communication being at its best how well the content and elements
of design have come together.
Gulf News has received seven awards of excellence at the Society for
News Design's 29th edition of The Best of Newspaper Design competition.
This is the second year in a row that the paper has won recognition
at the contest. In the past, Gulf News designers have won as individual
entries.
Miguel
Angel Gomez, Gulf News Design Director said: "It is the most recognised
contest in the world of news design, especially as a contest that
judges on the quality of how well design and aesthetics has been wedded
to information." But, why would a newspaper be bothered with the effort
and patience needed to create good design? It may not truly matter
to a reader if a headline is a darker shade of yellow ochre, but he
or she will care if good design means an easier read, better navigation
and organisation of content.
Gomez said: "Design, which includes graphics is a key part of a newspaper,
as most times the core content in newspapers may be similar but what
sets you apart is the way it is put together you are giving readers
a better experience."
Success at The Best of Newspaper Design competition means Gulf News
is achieving that right balance. But, it is not an equilibrium that
is easy to achieve. It needs patience, rigour, skill and an intrepid
spirit. As a newspaper you have to be ready to experiment and innovate
find new ways to tell a story or convey a fact. And the only way
to do that is through planning and a clear vision. "We specifically
look for innovation and avoid clich้s, something that adds value to
content," he said. "You have to always remember that content is king.
No matter how nice the presentation, if the content is not good it
will not work," Gomez said. "The winning of these SND awards is a
validation of that teamwork. All the awards this year are pages that
are examples of collaborative work." Gulf News has, to a great extent,
pioneered newspaper design in the region. Many credit it for the awakening
of design within this environment and setting trends. But, this leadership
means the responsibility to continuously build on. "Now the other
newspapers are following. Competition is always good. We raise the
bar every day because we want to be better," added Gomez.
Efforts recognised
By Dr Mario R. Garcia, CEO and founder of Garcia Media. Consultant
to Gulf News for the past eight years
"Why am I not surprised that Gulf News continues to win SND awards?
For one thing, I have witnessed first hand the evolution of Gulf News
as a publication that truly believes in innovation, constant change
and service to its readers.
Design is only a part of this, as it is more importantly about content,
responsible and credible journalism, and how news is packaged to make
it easy to find, easy to read and appealing. Gulf News and its online
edition do that, and more.
Both are service oriented, and the design elements are forever married
to content. Visual journalism at its best, and readers/users are the
beneficiaries."
Making
an impact
By Karl Gude, Professor of Info graphics at Michigan State
University, former director of graphics at Newsweek magazine and info
graphics consultant with Gulf News.
"Winning an award of this nature is a sign that a newspaper cares
about its appearance and is doing well to advance in that area. It
is making an impact. It also means that the newspaper will attract
good staff, as it is a good place to work in. "If a newspaper is well
designed when you are looking at it, you wish to stay with it and
spend time on it. "Good design also gives brand identity has it makes
for a logical read, better flow of matter and better use of visuals."
A first for the region
By Ramachandra Babu, Senior illustrator with Gulf News This
year, he was part of one of the judging panels at the SND's The Best
of Newspaper Design competition. "I looked at 8,000 pages in three
days. It offered a great opportunity to meet talent from around the
world and I got very good feedback about Gulf News from the other
judges.
"It is a privilege to be selected as an SND judge, especially as it
is for the first time from a newspaper in the region. "In fact, it
was a double honour as my caricature of the famed author Gabriel Garcia
Marquez was selected for an award of excellence by SND. "A caricature
is a kind of creative art that is different from a portraiture.
"The image has to be easily identifiable, it should be proportionate,
while exaggerating something specific without distortion. "It is a
tough task and every artist has a unique identity when it comes to
creating a caricature. "What is unique about my work is probably the
details, which you would also find across most of my work. "I would
call it my thumbprint."
Professional approach
By
Douglas Okasaki, Senior designer for Gulf News He is also the
regional director Middle East/Africa for the Society for News
Design "Design in newspapers in the region has become more and more
professional in the past three to four years.
"There is still a big gap between English and regional language newspapers.
But design has now become big and Gulf News is creating the benchmark
after winning for two consecutive years in the competition. Others
are following suit and this ensures better overall quality.
"Dubai with its dynamic spirit, facilities, artistic environment,
high-quality printing and publishing facilities should be developed
as the capital for graphic design in the region."
Represents a vast spectrum
By Marshall Matlock, SND/Newhouse Competitions Director "Gulf
News continues to improve how it looks and how it presents the news.
I admire how the editors and designers are able to reflect the fast
changing face of the UAE through the content and design of their newspaper.
The newspaper manages to appeal to a multi-ethnic readership with
a variety of interests. Readers come from cities and countries where
how newspapers read and look can represent a vast spectrum. The SND
competition recognises the best of the best for every award presented.
The competition's judges obviously found that the Gulf News' team
has excellent skills!"
read
more
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MULTIMEDIA
COMPETITION
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GULF NEWS
AND EMIRATES BUSINESS 24/7
WERE RECENTLY GRANTED PRIZES IN SND
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By
Alexandra Sandels FROM
APN
The
Dubai-based Gulf News and Emirates Business 24/7 newspapers were
recently granted prizes in an international contest for newspaper
design. A close collaboration between the editorial and the design
team is fundamental for the high visual standard, designers from
both papers said in an interview with APN.
Veteran-competitor Gulf News won eight awards for excellence in
newspaper design, including 'News and Features Design', while newbie
Emirates Business 24/7 was recognized for 'Graphics in Non-Breaking
News Stories' in the 29th Annual Creative Design Contest, organized
by the media design group Society for News Design (SND). The winners
were crowned by votes from nearly 400 daily and weekly newspapers
around the world.
The publication that bagged the majority of the awards in all 19
categories was the Los Angeles Times who earned 109 awards. A total
of 193 newspapers from 33 countries were granted prizes for their
design, of which the mere part went to publications in the United
States, Canada, and Mexico. Newspapers from Sweden, Turkey, Brazil,
and Singapore could also be found among the winners. "It is a great
honor for us to receive this award and for Emirates Business 24/7
to be recognized in this way.
We are looking forward to bringing our readers more informative
and interesting graphics in the months and years to come," Luis
Chumpitaz, Infographic Director at the Arab Media Group and
Designer at Emirates Business 24/7 told APN.
Douglas Okasaki, Designer at Gulf News, said in an interview
with APN that newspaper design remains an important aspect at his
publication. "Design is extremely important in our newsroom. Our
editorial team has this in mind and they always try to work together
with the design team. That is the best combination," said Okasaki
in an interview with APN.
Award
of Excellence: Infographic category by Luis Chumpitaz
Chumpitaz emphasized that graphics and photography are 'structural
parts of today's newspapers' and should count as 'equally communicative
as the text itself'. "Our editorial team is very optimistic about
the role of design at the paper. They consider the design a first
line element in regards to contact with the readers and therefore
put in efforts on that front," continued Chumpitaz. Moreover,
at business publications such as Emirates Business 24/7, which sometimes
feature technical information that might be tough for some readers
to grasp, visual aids such as infographics are necessary, reiterates
Chumpitaz.
When asked how Gulf News built up its award-winning visual approach,
Okasaki stipulated that the first 'big development' was to
invite a professional design company who created a design profile
of the paper. The most important aspect, however, is that the manager
of the publication possesses an interest in news design and realizes
the importance of it, highlighted Okasaki.
Though a fairly new venture, Emirates Business 24/7 has always paid
attention to its visual look, argues Chumpitaz, adding that
the publication went through a redesign and re-launched its visual
identity last year. The designers both agree that visuals and design
play critical roles in the image of a publication.
"Design is important because it is the way you present the news
for your readers. You do it in a professional way and it shows that
you respect your reader," said Okasaki. In addition, Okasaki
and Chumpitaz are convinced that good newspaper design increases
readership. Today's readers have a strong visual orientation that
needs to be taken seriously, they mean. "Of course the content brings
the most important value to a newspaper but the results obviously
become more effective when the information is presented in a good
way. In essence, design is a good tool for journalists to attract
the attention of the readers to their articles," stated Okasaki.
Chumpitaz
echoed Okasaki's claim maintaining that 'images communicate
in an immediate way and helps create a continuous narrative throughout
the paper'. While Arab papers constituted some of the winners in
SND's contest, no Arabic- language publication was granted an award.
Both Gulf News and Emirates Business 24/7 are published in English.
In answer to that, Okasaki, who also serves as SND's Regional
Director for Middle East and North Africa, asserted that the group
needs to spread more awareness of the competition among Arabic language
publications. "They simply might not have enough information about
the contest', he added. On that note, both Chumpitaz and
Okasaki still believe the future for newspaper design in the
Arab world is a very bright one, though yet unexplored.
"The way the Arabic language is written is very graphic and beautiful,
but not looked into sufficiently in regards to design," said Okasaki
while Chumpitaz stressed that the issue is simply a 'matter
of diffusion,' emphasizing better interaction with design counterparts
around the world. "Interest in the aesthetic value of the Arabic
language is increasing around the world. We can arrive at great
results if we manage to find teams that can assimilate international
design know-how with Arabic culture and its particular sense of
graphics," concluded Chumpitaz. This year's winning designs
can be retrieved in SND's yearly report on newspaper design, 'The
Best of Newspaper Design'.
APN
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