Derek Brings Up a Good Point

Derek’s blog entry “The Importance of Information at a Glance” made me pay attention to one thing I neglected to notice in my own critique of the front pages of the newspapers.  This little thing that make a big difference is the font. 

Font can convey, like body language, an attitude depending on how it moves.  The masthead print of the Chicago Tribune is very official-looking.  The font has an old style to it as if to convey that they’ve been around and have enough experience so you can trust them.  The main stories on this newspaper all use a font similar to Times New Roman that has seraphs on it.  Fonts with seraphs, as Dr. Jerz revealed during the first week of school, are fancier and usually convey a more serious message.  Although “Breaking down the Bears’ victory over Seattle” still has the seraphs (because to the sports fan, football is a serious subject), notice that the font is more blockish and gray.  It’s a bit more playful because the story does not carry the same weight as say “Fear, grief as classes resume at Fenger.”  Thanks for making me think, Derek! (Here I use script in order to convey my sincere thanks to you.)