Assignment 10 - Newspaper.Design

Value: 15%
Production Timeline: Two Weeks
Due Date: April 16

Newspaper design includes considerations of color, typography, design psychology, information architecture, typographical and content hierarchy, word/story counts, and how the design and content reflect one another. As a result, it is a complex mixture of design challenges, especially because you are dealing with multiple pages. The design must be considered from both macro and micro perspectives: from the design of the whole publication to individual page layouts. A style guide must be implemented to maintain visual continuity to each page.

In this assignment, you will utilize your accumulative knowledge from Design Fundamentals for New Media, by redesigning three pages of the University of Lethbridge student newspaper "The Meliorist." These will include:

The front cover
- redesign "The Meliorist" logo, tagline, publication date and masthead
- base cover design on a feature article of your choice
- include titles and page numbers to other articles found in the issue

A double page spread of one or two inside feature article pages
- depending on the length of the article, you may use one long feature article, or an additional short article
- analyze the best way to present the content of the article - use pullout quotes, inset boxes with additional information, pictures and graphics, side stories
- you may do additional research to provide extra content to the article, or edit the article and pull out information from it to present away from the main body copy of the article
- illustrate key points with graphics or illustrations
- all your design choices - images, fonts, colours, layout approach, visual style - must visually match the content of the article
- keep in mind your audience - their ages, interests, etc.
- your compositions must show understanding of typographical hierarchies and information design, in addition to design principles
- include page numbers, a section logo, publication date and name of newspaper on each page

Ensure that your spelling is accurate, that hyphenation doesn't occur on more than two consecutive lines, and there there are no widows or orphans at the end of paragraphs. Use no more than two fonts, and create typographical variety with the use of different weights, sizes and styles.

Articles can be found on The Meliorist web site: http://www.themeliorist.com.

Deliverables:


Research newspaper design on the web or at the library, and provide three samples of design approaches and layouts which inspired your final design. Write a few paragraphs on which elements you used from each.

Layout on 11x17 paper, with a 1/2" margin around all edges.

Print in full colour, on card stock paper.

Upload a jpg of your assignment to your blog and provide comments on your creative process. Make an Adobe Acrobat "PDF" file available on your class folder.

Evaluation will be based upon the following criteria:

- Has the student followed the assignment directions?
- Does the design reflect an understanding of the principles explored in the class sessions?
- Is there an interesting or innovative approach to the design?
- Is there an attention to detail and level of precision in the graphical artwork?
- Is the information legible and appropriate?
- Does the design faithfully reflect the audience?
- Did the student invest an adequate level of time and energy in completing this assignment?

Click here to open a slide presentation on newspaper design.

Click here to download the Illustrator double page spread template.
Click here to download the Illustrator cover template.