This is the weekend edition of TheMarioBlog and will be updated as needed. The next blog post is Monday, Oct. 17
Here is for you, kids.
In Australia, Crinkling News,is a new weekly covering local and international affairs for children. It already has 3,500 paying subscribers, about 20,000 readers, including around 500 schools.
Not only that, but Crinkling News tries to lure readers to the journalistic profession. Children write opinion pieces and reviews, and one interviewed Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull for the paper’s launch.
We welcome this new publication and hope that it cultivates many new readers. Hope the idea catches elsewhere.
Hurricane coverage and Village Daily Sun
Great work, as always, by those guys in Florida, under the able and very visual leadership of Bonita Burton.
Take a look at the various front pages from the Village Daily Sun reporting on Hurricane Matthew, which gave Florida a good, windy and wet run for its money a few days ago.
I like how a design template is used effectively. More importantly, notice that the headlines advance the story rather than repeating what the readers already know.
Good work! Bravo.
The New York Times, The Washington Post: doing what they do best
A series of USA Today articles titled Trump And The Law
Historically, both the Times and the Post have emphasized the role of the newspaper as watchdog of society—with a special eye on politicians. So, it is no surprise that in this bizarre presidential election campaign of 2016, both papers have proved again that newspapers can keep politicians on their toes, and prospective voters informed.
The Times revealed that Donald Trump declared a net loss of almost one billion dollars, which legally allowed him not to pay taxes for up to 18 years, something that in the Donald’s own words made him “smart”.
The Post offered the first of the October surprises—I am sure there are more to come—with a video in which the Donald used graphically descriptive language to boast about his sexual exploits with women.
Both stories turned the page during this presidential campaign, and reminded us that the press can still be powerful, even in the digital age. It’s all about good journalism and stories that change how we think—and vote.
Meanwhile, USA Today, too, has been publishing a series of articles titled Trump And The Law, describing in detail what it describes as Trump's “vulgar treatment of women” and reporting on 20 legal suits brought against the mogul for alleged sexism.
My good friend and Paris Match editor, Olivier Royant, sent me a note about this, which summed it up well:
“So many things have been said and written about the decline of traditional legacy media. The presidential candidates don't pay much attention to these media anymore. They want to use their own platforms to have a direct link with the electorates.
The truth is the New York Times ( with the Tax Return story) and the Washington Post ( with the story of Trump trying to having sex with a woman in 2006) are the ones on the frontline these days. They are the ones pounding Trump where it hurts….Funny no ? These 2 institutions ( along with USA Today) are the most efficient.”
Still seats available for Digital Design Conference next week
The Digital Design Challenge conference is scheduled at Columbia University, School of Journalism, Oct. 17-18.
I am proud fo be one of the speakers. The conference, directed by Roger Black, aims to present an honest discussion of how innovative design can change how we present information digitally, with designers on hand to offer potential solutions.
In a unique two-day event, you’ll hear industry experts address the reasons for success and failure of the look and feel of news on the web and in apps—and the implications for business models and sustainability.
A digital #designchallenge w/@MacDiva @DrMarioRGarcia @meganhchan @jtemplejrnalist and more.
For registration information, go here:
http://about.poynter.org/about-us/events/poynter-digital-design-challenge