I have decided to create a monthly newspaper that focuses on Bedfordshire as a County. Doing this means that I will have much more to write about than if my newspaper was on a town alone and published weekly.It will also increase community throughout the county as it is suitable for every person who is a part of Bedfordshire and will inform them about what is going on not just in their town or village, but also in the other surrounding ones, giving me a broader target audience.
I want my newspaper to be traditionally local, but with some connotations and themes of a more modern tabloid paper, to make it look just as glamorous as a mainstream paper but with all the information in of a local. I believe this will appeal to my audience as after some research into local newspapers myself, they always seem to be quite plain and uninteresting. I want my newspaper to stand out among the other other local choices.
Newspaper Name
Possible name options:
- The Bedfordshire Express
- Beds Monthly
- Bedfordshire News
- The Bedfordshire Times
- The Bedfordshire Mail
After much deliberation, I decided to call my newspaper The Bedfordshire Times. I focused on popular mainstream newspaper names when coming up with my own possibilities, and chose to include the word Bedfordshire between 'The Times' which is one of the most popular tabloid newspapers around. This reflects my idea of a local newspaper with tabloid themes and connotations. The name is strong and classic.
Headlines
For inspiration to my main headline on the front page, I thought about what I would expect to find as a hot topic in both local and tabloid newspapers. One that was common between them, linking the two types of papers together once again. Of course, with some research and purchasing of both types of papers, a main news topic at the moment is the extreme cold weather that England and other parts of the world are suffering from. Bedfordshire is experiencing the big freeze also, so I thought that to be a solid starting point and headline for my front page. The weather affects everybody, especially when it is extreme snow or ice, so my audience will instantly be interested, eager to know how the weather is affecting their local area.
Other features
- Mention of the of a feature that will be described on the website. Possible ideas: a free magazine for the younger/older people of Bedforshire? Linking the website to the newspaper.
- Another free item, keyring or map? Relatable to Bedfordshire.
- One other feature that will be presented in the newspaper.
Inner page headline
- Storyline on the zoo? Well known and something that the people of Bedfordshire can be proud of. Perhaps a new arrival or some news from Whipsnade with an appropriate image.
Layout (front page)
In keeping with typical local newspapers, I have chosen to keep my layout reasonably simple:
- Name of the paper across the top of the page, potentially two lines, with also a logo of some sort that could represent the paper and therefore be a point of familiarity for my readers.
- Pricing, date and web address also along the top
- 3 or 4 mini headlines in own coloured boxes along the top underneath the title, with headline and page number
- Main headline underneath that in very large capital font
- Article and image with caption beneath headline
- Some type of advert going along the bottom of the page with an image
Layout (Inner page)
- Headline with story somewhere on the page, image to compliment.
- Another advertisement
- Credits roll, with names of writers and contributors to the newspaper, also contact numbers and email addresses.
- Semi contents, showing audience where they can find a particular topic/area with page numbers.
Pricing
- After research, will price my newspaper at something similar to that of 50p.
- Local newspapers often delivered round houses, so perhaps have '50p where sold' on front page.
- Also offer a delivery service if not already applicable.
Colours and fonts
- Fairly traditional and simple colour scheme; black text with bursts of red and yellow? Or red and blue? Coloured images.
- Headline: Have 'Times' in typical old fashioned gothic font against the ordinary type font for 'The Bedforshire'. Will carry this idea through from my website and poster to create a link between all three. Headlines in large capital letters, standard font for main smaller text.
Link/bond between all 3 media formats
I want to ensure everybody knows and can tell immediately that my website, poster and newspaper are all part of the same name/brand. Need to create links between them:
- Having 'Times' in an old fashioned gothic font from the name of newspaper.
- A logo? Perhaps a map of Bedfordshire.
- Similar adverts displayed on both the website and newspaper.
- Features that can be found in both formats - Beds Youth magazine idea?
No comments:
Post a Comment