Newspapers seeking to improve their appearances should consider non- narrative forms, think graphically and plan ahead, said John Duchenskie, the graphics editor at the Philadelphia Inquirer.
Duchenskie and Harrisburg Patriot-News sports editor Paul Vigna presented a "Say it with Infographics" session at the Associated Press Sports Editors annual Mid-Atlantic regional meeting April 18 at Penn State.
An example of this were double trucks in place of a special section the Inquirer used to preview the 2011 baseball season. The paper did a nine-part countdown to opening day feature, with each day corresponding to a position. The Phillies’ Chase Utley at second base was at No. 4, for example. Each double truck, which began with a structured dummy, used a Bill Lyon column, a photo sequence of the best at each position in team history and a ranking of all 32 starters in the majors, among other items. A historical timeline of who played the position year-to-year filled a 2×12 unsold ad hole at the bottom.
The paper also tries to show more than just one thing with each graphic. A display comparing decibel levels at Citizens Bank Park during a playoff game listed the level for a key late-inning hit with a similar loud noise, such as a jackhammer.
Other sources, such as fangraphs.com, hittrackeronline.com, baseballinfosolutions.com, and brooksbaseball.net can provide raw data and ideas. Assembling graphic information from Roy Halladay’s perfect game and playoff no-hitter was easier because the staff knew where to look for information.
Planning ahead also helped the paper have a Donovan McNabb package ready for last spring’s sudden trade. The staff went to work once Eagles coach Andy Reid said all quarterbacks were on the table, which helped the presentation for the Easter Sunday deal. A home-run tracking page made a few years ago just in case Ryan Howard hit 60 home runs was easily tweaked into a full-page graphic on his MVP season.
Duchenskie, who also works with news side on graphics comparing issues like Obama and Republican budget proposals, said he likes working with sports because the brainstorming sessions are best.
Vigna and the Patriot-News are a smaller operation than The Inquirer and less high-tech. Because of that, Vigna said, selling the writers on graphical ideas is most important."The more numbers you can pull from a story, the better, because it frees up the writers to write," said Vigna, who has five copy editors either using or learning InDesign for graphics work.
Another way the Patriot-News works in graphics on its tabloid layout is letting a copy editor fill Page 2 with a design, such as a list of the top 10 dunkers in the NBA.
