Place Name: First Place Contestant Name: The Tidewater News Entry Title: Tidewater News Jan. 3 edition Entry Credit: Loretta Lomax Judge Comment: Love the mixture of typography in this publication. The jump lines are sharp, there is a clear hierarchy on the pagem and the ad-edit balance feels comfortable to navigate. I particularly appreciate the clear sectioning with consistent and visually distinct section headers.The use of subtle, yet effective, graphics and photos really enhances the stories, without feeling cluttered. Overall, it's a very well-balanced and user-friendly design. Law by the Letter is a very cool and well designed feature ... diverse storytelling ... summer planner design very fun.
Place Name: Second Place Contestant Name: The Smithfield Times Entry Title: Love, cellphones and hospital Entry Credit: Stephen Faleski, Jen Jaqua, Steve Stewart Judge Comment: Love that your newspaper does a grad tab! The banner ad — especially the ones with the shadows — on the cover knocked some points off this category for me. Oftentimes less is more with designs.
Place Name: Third Place Contestant Name: Rappahannock News Entry Title: Rappahannock News layout Entry Credit: Dennis Brack Judge Comment: Overall, this is a great-looking publication. It has quality paper and a clean design. QR codes directing readers to meeting videos and links to more photos is very clever and tastefully done.
Constructive feedback: The strip cover ads are overwhelming for a tab this size, especially without a fold. I know we're all doing what we need to do to keep the lights on, but the ads are so dark and loud that they are more prominent than the newspaper's flag. The ad-edit ratio throughout is disproportionate. The first few pages are only full-page ads, which made me wonder if I was venturing into an advertorial publication. It took me several pages to get to the heart of the paper — and the content is excellent. It's a shame it's buried deep within.
