6 basic components of a newspaper page design.

When people pick up a newspaper during their daily routine and look at the photos and stories that it holds, very rarely do they think of how big of a role each component of a page's design plays. I know before I was a journalism student, I did not pay attention to these details at all and didn't even know the names of all the different parts of a page design.

However, these are things that we student journalists must address on a weekly basis. Making all of these different parts meld and work well together is of the utmost importance for a good looking paper.

This post highlights 6 different design components in this weeks edition of the Doane Owl"

1. The Flag

This box at the top left corner of the Doane Owl is called 'the flag'. Every newspaper has a flag. This is the way that a paper identifies itself to the public. It incorporates the name of the paper and a design that the paper's staff came up with. Some papers experiment with their flags on a daily or weekly basis, putting a picture or graphic in with the letters to give it a new and fresh look. The flag may also be customized to a certain time of year or event that is happening in that paper's community.

2. Sky Boxes

The second component are call sky boxes. These serve as a preview of other stories that are featured in the paper. These go at the top of Page 1, next to the flag so that it is one of the first things that the reader sees when they pick up the paper. Each one has the page number of where the story can be found and pictures and short headlines to show the reader what the stories will be about.

3. Headline

Many people are familiar with what a headline is; a quick sentence in large font to let the reader know what the story below it is about. In this case, the headline is, "Doane costs raise to $43,200". The headline below that is called a 'deck' but we'll get into that in a little bit. There is a lot of things that can happen with a headline. They can be bigger, smaller (depending on the importance of the story), and can be positioned in different ways. However, the headline should always touch the text of the story that will accompany it, so that readers know which story they are reading. Putting a photo after a headline and then putting text is usually a no-no.

4. Deck

As mentioned above, a 'deck' is a smaller headline that accompanies the main headline. Decks are used to give readers a little more detail about a story. This is not necessary for all stories as the main headlines usually can cover the point of the story. Notice that the deck is also touching the text of the story as it is still a type of headline.

5. By-line

Wonder who wrote the story you just read? Look at the by-line. These accompany almost every story in a newspaper so that the writers can get some credit for their work. These are also helpful for readers as they can look at them to find out who to contact if they have an issue or praise about the story. By-lines include the writer's name and their position on the paper's staff.

6. Jump

Last, but not least, is the 'jump'. Some stories are going to be longer than others in every edition. However, there is a limited amount of space in a newspaper. So, if the story is too long for the page and needs to be continued, editors will put the rest of the story on the next page. The jump serves as to assist the reader and tells them which page the rest of the story is on and which reference word to look for to find the story. Jumps also go at the end bottom of a leg of text.

These 6 components are not all of the different design components that you'll find in a newspaper. There are boxes, there are graphics, there are photos, there are lines, and much more. However, these are some of the most basic ones that you will see in an average newspaper. So, the next time you pick up that newspaper on your daily routine, please think about the many parts that journalists must think about when designing a page.

Thank you!