Very basic guide to newspapers: The page

This is the first post of a very basic attempt to describe how a newspaper gets from nothing to something you hopefully read and enjoy. It may end up in multiple parts if I can get the enthusiasm to finish it! It isn't in any kind of chronological order.

When you look at a newspaper page, you see stories (usually by seeing headlines). Some that you might want to read, some that you might skip over, and occasionally a picture will draw your attention enough to read the caption, if not the story itself.

From a newspaper's point of view, that's a page with boxes on it - text boxes or pictures boxes, or, in the case of plain good design - just coloured boxes. The page layout (where all the boxes of text, etc go) is designed by an Art Desk - yes, they've usually been to art school and everything! (How it's designed is another post.)

A large newspaper, like the one I've worked on, may have had numerous people working on the page you're looking at (not right now, you're reading this blog - sorry for boring you!).

Once the story's reached the page (yes, that's another post too) one person may be editing (checking for spelling mistakes, accuracy, fact checking, good word flow, getting it to fit the available space, making sure they won't be sued, and more) the story itself, someone else might be writing a headline to attract your attention or at least describe what you're going to read (a very important talent), another might be writing all the captions on the pictures on the page, and people making sure the pictures are placed on the page correctly (and in an interesting way). If they have capable software - this may all be happening at the same time in different seats in an office (or in some cases somewhere else).

There's often people checking the work of these people once they've completed it and someone to make sure the page looks perfect (or at least try to) before it is sent off to its next destination (and eventually you).

Depending on the newspaper (daily or weekly, etc) and the type of news (news, features, sport, etc), that page you've read may have taken weeks, days, or even hours to be created. That same page might indulge your attention for a few minutes or you may not even bother to read what may have taken numerous man (person) hours to create. Possibly a good thing?