As Spain continues to celebrate its grand victory in the Euro 2008 Football Final last Sunday, defeating Germany 1-0, the Spanish press covers the event with the pride and exhuberance that one is to expect.
I am fascinated by how El Pais, El Mundo and ABC, three of the country’s most important and highest circulation dailies, make use of this great event to explore the electronic media. This is a case of editors who are thinking of the best medium to tell the story and proceed accordingly.
I am most impressed by ABC (www.abc.es). On page 2 of the printed newspaper, the editors carry a banner strip to promote its online edition content, highlighting:
1. Video: Watch all the videos related to the Euro 2008 victory.
2. Photos: “After 20 days of championship activity, we have gathered unforgettable moments in the Eurocopa 2008 category. Would you like to see them all? Go videos.abc.es and look for the category of interest toy ou.
3.Visiting the Past: “Remember the Eurocopa 1964 (the last time that Spain had conquered the title). ABC has recovered the cover of our newspaper that day, and the most important images. We have colorized the images, which continue to be unforgettable.”
AND, because it is July 1, and most of Spain starts vacations today, there is an added bonus about traffic conditions in Spanish roads. Go abc.hoymotor.com/trafico.
Well done, ABC. Your printed edition of today covers the return of the Spanish football players completely, both photographically and journalistically. The added videos and photos on the online edition should satisfy the most demanding of readers/users.
Again, a big win for Spain.
WHERE IS MARIO: Sitting at the Café de Paris in Maspalomas, where one can order a Cola Light with ice and lemon, and get a card to go on line free for 30 minutes. It is pure relaxation in picturesque Maspalomas, in the Canary Islands. Maspalomas translates as More Pigeons. Indeed, there are pigeons everywhere, and we fed cookie crumbs to a group of them at the beach today. Some are black with specks of white, sort of flying nuns; today, however, I spotted two that appeared to have been painted lightly with pink and lavender over the head, as tan feathers covered the rest of the body. White pigeons appear from time to time, a reminder of how peaceful this place is. The city could be called Masgatos (More Cats), and I know my dad would have taken permanent residency here. A black one that looks like a tame panther is my favorite. It could also be called Masflores (More flowers). One would be hard pressed to find more colorful flowers anywhere climbing over fences, or staring at you as you walk down the boulevards. The flowers here are not shy. They want to be noticed, photographed , admired. If there are divas in the flower world, these are it.
