After a long weekend break due partly to illness followed by the NYGIANTS winning the Superbowl, or Super Bowl, I’m back and will be posting more as the section editors have long grasped by now the complexity of nightly production, leaving me a few seconds more blogging time. We happily PDF-ed around 2:30 tonight despite late news (yet another robbery) and ran our 7th consecutive Election Series article. The 8th and final piece of that well-timed project (organized by deputy news editor Betsy Morais) will run tomorrow on Super Tuesday. I’ll be sad to see that big blue Election Series graphic go.
In planning big projects News sometimes opts for analyses, which allow the writer to step back and comment on larger trends and use a few less quotes in favor of summary; or the section goes with an Implications page, in which the writer(s) stretch their legs with longer pieces that try to sketch a narrative and/or highlight a specific issue with thorough reporting; finally the third option is a series. The series is difficult to plan in that a story has to appear in more than one paper - it takes continuous focus, thorough planning, and consistent editing to retain the same tone, perspective, hooks, and general themes from beginning to end. Even though we’re only in our third week I think Betsy did well with this one, seeking out a variety of stories and finding the right dedicated reporters to work on it.
To be safer, we can also run ‘occasional series,’ which feature articles about one specific issue, well, occasionally. These can be just as interesting, though, because the reporter is under less pressure to meet a deadline and may get that last key interview - also, some issues can be broached almost any time in a given year.
Also, I fell sick just as I was preparing to rep The Eye last week. In case you haven’t yet, check out the new-look magazine. Production Editor Haley Vecchiarelli put in some overtime with the Eye editors to rethink the design. The goal was accessibility, readability, and filling white space. The magazine is starting to find its identity and the way people talk about it now, I can tell it will be around for awhile.
Last but not least: our Online poll is back on our home page! Be sure to vote today - it’s about who you’ll be voting for today.