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Charles Apple: The Visual Side of Journalism

 

‘Des Moines Register’ archive

Number of comments in parentheses

May 21: A look at today’s notable Oklahoma tornado front pages (2)

In the future, whenever you think of the horrifying tragedy Monday in Oklahoma, you’ll remember this image: That was shot in Moore, Okla., by Sue Ogrocki of the Associated Press. Sue’s first-person story is downright chilling: I expected chaos as I approached the piles of bricks and twisted metal where Plaza Towers Elementary once stood. Instead, it was calm and [...]

May 6: Move over, Batboy: Meet Van Meter’s winged ‘Visitor’

My old pal Nathan Groepper, creative director of the Gannett Design Studio in Des Moines, Iowa, writes: I thought this might appeal to your offbeat sensibilities. The Des Moines Register [ran on Saturday] a story about a sighting of a giant winged monster in a small town in Iowa 110 years ago. The mysterious creature was discovered in a coal [...]

March 10: Who are you calling a ‘ho’?

I know that is supposed to say “hoops.” And you know that is supposed to say “hoops.” But does the reader know? I rather doubt it. Not at first glance, anyway. That was a wrap around today’s sports section in my old paper, the Des Moines Register. Thanks to my tipster, Charlie Weaver, who’s up the road at Iowa State [...]

Feb. 12: A look at today’s most outstanding Pope Benedict XVI pages (1)

Huge news broke Monday morning: The Pope is resigning. Pope Benedict XVI will be the first pope in 598 years to resign, as opposed to dying in office. This move — along with the baggage the Catholic church is carrying around these days — made for huge play atop page one of today’s New York Times. That picture by L’Osservatore [...]

Feb. 1: Looking back at space shuttle Columbia graphics, 10 years ago today (2)

The space shuttle Columbia disintegrated during re-entry over Texas ten years ago today. The Des Moines Register — where I served as graphics editor — went all-out with a number of breaking news graphics. We did this because: a) We had a strong local angle: An Iowa woman was among the seven astronauts killed that morning. b) I have a [...]

Jan. 18: Today’s genius sports front is brought to you by… (1)

I don’t have a whole lot to say about this sports front from today’s Des Moines Register. Other than: 1) It was designed by Jeremy Gustafson, sports team leader at the Gannett design studio in Des Moines. And 2) It’s pure genius. Creative director Nathan Groepper tells me that Jeremy… …was responsible for coming up with that great headline, too. [...]

Jan. 2: Today’s best Fiscal Cliff front pages (1)

I got a bit of mileage late last night with this attempt at humor: Because of the lateness of the vote, perhaps, only a few papers — even some on the East Coast — managed to put together pleasing and interesting front-page treatments today that focused on the Fiscal Cliff vote. Here’s a look at the most notable… — NEW [...]

Nov. 6, 2012: Today’s five best Election Day front pages (1)

Let’s start today’s roundup with one I do not like: This one from the New York Post that I’d call less of a newspaper front page and more of an editorial. I don’t have a problem with page-one editorials per se — in fact, I’ve been known to praise them from time to time. But an editorial should be labeled [...]

Nov. 4, 2012: A look at today’s election-oriented front pages (4)

Is it just me or has this presidential election cycle seemed way too damned long? Either way, it’s finally nearing its end. Here’s how my old friend Mark Marturello illustrated this today for the Des Moines Register. Let’s take a look at the day’s most notable presentations featuring the election on the Sunday before Election Day… — DES MOINES REGISTER [...]

Sept. 27, 2012: Singers, coaches, referees and thieves: Ten notable Thursday front pages (1)

Here are ten front pages worthy of your attention today… — DES MOINES REGISTER Des Moines, Iowa Circulation: 101,915 Singer Andy Williams died Thursday. Did you know he was a native of Iowa? I did, but only because I lived in Iowa for five years. The Register honored Williams with a large illustration on the front today. The page was [...]

Sept. 23, 2012: Election graphics and illustrations on Sunday’s front pages

You can tell we’re in the thick of an election year. A number of papers led their front pages today with election-themed graphics or illustrations. — BEACON JOURNAL Akron, Ohio Circulation: 88,040 Papers across Ohio teamed up for a new poll that was released today. The poll shows President Barack Obama is leading the state with 51 percent of the [...]

Sept. 17, 2012: Fun with the nameplate today in Des Moines (3)

William Castronuovo — former art director of the Washington Times and the New York Daily News, former design director of the Miami Herald and currently editor and publisher of the Washington Reader — noted the funky skybox treatment atop today’s Des Moines Register… … and tells Jim Romenesko: The Register is the last newspaper I though would do something like [...]

Sept. 13, 2012: Are question headlines really effective on a day like this?

As you can see from these headlines, there are a lot of questions out there involving the attack this week on the U.S. embassy in Benghazi, Libya. What I don’t understand is why so many newspapers today led with question headlines. Hey, I’m not the world’s best headline writer myself — as you can see every day here in the [...]

Sept. 10, 2012: The most interesting weekend front pages

Here’s a (slightly belated) roundup of the best and most interesting of the weekend’s front pages… _____________________________________ USE IT BIG AND GET THE HELL OUT OF ITS WAY — ST. LUCIE NEWS TRIBUNE Fort Pierce, Fla. Circulation: 29,261 That’s my favorite advice for when you have great art: Use it big and get the hell out of its way. Even [...]

Aug. 25, 2012: Wonderful illustration today on the front of the Des Moines Register

Readers in Iowa were treated today with yet another wonderful piece by master illustrator Mark Marturello. The story — by my old pal Dan Finney — is about the power of celebrity endorsements in the world of politics. Visible are Matt Damon, Johnny Depp, Snooki Polizzi, Hank Williams Jr., Kanye West… Even Britney Spears and Justin Bieber. Um… is that [...]

Aug. 3, 2012: Cool Olympics picture sports front alert

My old pal Jeremy Gustafson of Gannett’s Des Moines Design Studio tells us: Gabby Douglas won the all-around gold. Hey, even though she is from Virginia, she trained in Iowa. Hey, Gabby Douglas is an Iowan. Got to go big on the sports front for her big day. Had two different covers (the poster refer is all that changed) but [...]

July 27, 2012: A look at the Chicago Tribune’s Olympics special section… (1)

The Olympics have begun. — CHICAGO TRIBUNE Chicago, Ill. Circulation: 414,590 Here to kick things off in style for us with a 12-page special section: The Chicago Tribune, with a wrap-around cover illustration. Click, of course, for a larger view. The Tribune‘s Joe Knowles tells us: This was quite an undertaking, with photos of all 529 U.S. Olympians built into [...]

June 29, 2012: The good, the bad and the most interesting health-care court ruling front pages (7)

One of the reasons I love the little 26,531-circulation Victoria (Texas) Advocate is because the paper does a pretty great job now. But it’s always looking to do better. Case in point: I heard this morning via Twitter from Chris Cobler, the editor of the Advocate. Chris writes: And my reply is: You did pretty well today, Chris. You recognized [...]

June 7, 2012: Des Moines’ Nicole Bogdas taking time off this week to make a donation (1)

Nicole Bogdas is taking a little time away from her job as senior news designer for the Des Moines Register in order to work on a side project. She’s donating a kidney to her father. Seriously. This is happening this weekend — right now — at the VA hospital in Iowa City. The reason we know: Nicole is live-tweeting as [...]

June 6, 2012: A look at the good and the mundane on todays’ front pages (6)

Let’s take a quick spin through the day’s notable front pages, as found at the Newseum… ____________________________________________ THREE INTERESTING WWII ANNIVERSARY TREATMENTS Today, of course, is the 68th anniversary of D-Day, a key moment in World War II. Our D-Day veterans, sadly, are passing away. So it’s becoming even more difficult than ever before to find someone locally to talk [...]

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