Research into Newspaper Websites

For my second ancillary task I will need to create the two pages of a website for my local newspaper. Before beginning to plan this task, I will first need to look at existing websites to gain an understanding of the structure and content of such pages. To begin with I looked at the webpage of Dunstable Today.

Final Draft of Newspaper Poster

After several drafts of my poster, I feel the one above is complete and finished to the highest possible standard. Compared to the first poster, I have incorporated a lot more colour and images to ensure the poster is as eye-catching and engaging as possible, along with catchy slogans to keep viewers attention. The use of photos taken by myself personally has also increased the originality of the poster.

The transition of pictures of local landmarks to images of local events such as school football matches, evokes a bigger ‘community spirit’ feel, and gives viewers an idea of what will be included in the newspaper, which is essentially their life and news.

The use of the clock tower as the main focus of the poster, which is also a main feature and landmark at the heart of Dunstable, produces a more local feel, and the bringing together of the community.

Second Draft of Newspaper Poster

First Draft of Newspaper Poster

Newspaper Advertising

An important aspect of creating my own local newspaper is the advertisement in the form of radio announcements, posters, flyers etc, as this is essentially what sells the paper to readers. For one of the ancillary tasks for my project I have decided to create an advertisary poster for my newspaper to entice readers, and ensure my paper sells.
A crucial part of the poster will be the visual aspect, as this will obviously be the first thing people see before reading any information, so it needs to be eye-catching and enticing. Following this the information provided on the poster needs to be short, but engaging and give the readers the necessary information they need.

Name Brainstorm

The name of my newspaper will be one of the first things readers see, and will distinguish my paper from all the others, so it needs to be catchy, but simple and easy to remember. It needs to have positive connotations and reflect how life in Dunstable is. The title allows my target audience to recognise the paper, so I need to ensure the name is highlighted on advertising material.

After brainstorming possible names for my newspaper I decided on Dunstable Weekly. I came to this decision as I felt it coincided with existing newspapers whose names are typically short, simple and to the point, such as MK News and Dunstable Gazette. I think the name being quite informal fits in with the local tabloid style of the newspaper, and straight away what town its aimed at, how often its released etc.

I now need to look at different text fonts, sizes and the possibility of using color to decide which would be best for my newspaper. As most newspaper headings are relatively simple and straight forward I will select ones that will be suitable.

Target Audience of Newspaper

Most national newspapers are typically targeting and read by adults or young adults, but local newspapers can be accessible to and aimed towards a younger audience as well, especially if the news included is applicable to them. Local newspapers can cover stories on school events, groups or clubs so although it may not be specifically aimed at the younger audience I would need to take into consideration that younger people may be reading.

To gain more of an idea of who will be reading my newspaper and what they will expect to find in it I have decided to construct a questionnaire which I will give to Dunstable inhabitants of various ages to fill out, and compare results to find out what my typical audience age range is.