As the Web rapidly becomes the most popular platform for news consumption, newspaper designers have also been shifting their attentions. Some designers are taking traditional newspaper design features, such as easily navigable pages, and applying them to news websites. But other designers in both print and Web news are beginning anew, seeking the freshest looks that reflect the modern news landscape.    

To gain an idea of news design in the digital age, The World Editors Forum asked five top newspaper designers (see bios below), to name their Top 10 news website designs and Top 5 newspaper designs of 2008. This chapter compiles the news organizations that most commonly appeared on their lists in no particular order. Each example includes several design examples and is accompanied by a text written by the designers. The World Editors Forum congratulates all news organizations on their nomination.

 

JUDGES

Jacqueline Wu Boey
Jacqueline Wu Boey is the Creative Director of the Special Projects Unit of Singapore Press Holdings (SPH). Her works have won several newspaper design awards including Ifra Asia Media Gold and Silver, and Judges’ Special Recognition Awards and Panpa’s Best Advertising Feature/Supplement Award. She has also led a team of designers to redesign AsiaOne, a web portal run by SPH and its TV and print branding campaign. Her creative work on the AsiaOne TV ad campaign won The Asia Film, Video and Digital Media Award.

Alberto Cairo, Assistant Professor Infographics, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Alberto Cairo is James H. Schumaker distinguished assistant professor  of infographics and multimedia at the School of Journalism of the  University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (US). He regularly works as  a consultant for publications worldwide through his company,  www.visualopolis.com. He is the author of 'Infografia 2.0', a book on  information visualization in the news. His personal website,  www.albertocairo.com, is considered a major resource in this field.

Robb Montgomery, CEO, VisualEditors.com
Robb Montgomery is the CEO of Visual Editors and principal in Robb Montgomery Consulting. He has worked as a visual editor for the Chicago Sun-Times and the Chicago Tribune and partners with media groups in the Middle East, Asia, U.K., Europe and North America to improve digital journalism initiatives, Web video, newspaper design and online multimedia.

Anders Tapola
Anders Tapola is President of Society for News Design Scandinavia since 2007. He is Head of Design at Smålandsposten, Växjö, Sweden, and has been working as a journalist more than 30 years. In 2001 he was doing the redesign when Smålandsposten went from broadsheet to tabloid, toghether with Danish Design Consultant Ole Munk. The redesign received a silver medal in Society for News Designs competition Best of Scandinavian News Design in 2002. In 2007 he worked together with Swedish Design Consultants Rickard Frank and Jacob Nordström with a new redesign of Smålandsposten. Anders Tapola is also a reviewer of music and fermented beverages – mostly beer.

Martin Huisman
Martin Huisman graduated as an industrial designer, specialized in   Graphics. He started his career in Amsterdam as a magazine-designer.   Ultimately that brought him to Belgium where he worked as an art   director for a number of monthly and weekly magazines. September 2001   he changed to newspaper-design as art director of 'De Morgen', until   this day. De Morgen won the European Newspaper-design Award twice, in   2004 and 2006.