Beat this football special section cover(s)

Here's where I think the Sentinel came up short:

Unless I'm looking at the wrong thing, there is nothing on the cover that even suggests that McCain and Obama are posing specifically for the Sentinel, and for Florida football. I was expecting Obama posing with local football players, or holding a pair of local helmets. Sure, its great the paper was able to accomplish what they did. But for all anybody knows, those shots were generic shots taken by each man's campaign and distributed to a number of different rags. To make this really work, and give people the "Holy shit, Obama/McCain are playing along with our local football teams" reaction, there's got to be something local incorporated, no?

 

It captures your attention, and it's creative. It has imagery on several levels.

The photo, however, doesn't say football. I agree with that criticism. Football has that connotation as a blue-collar sport. These guys are wearing shirts and ties. I'd rather see real pigskin in their hands, too. It'd be nice, too, if the campaign staff let these guys wear some football-related equipment. Hell, even a Bears hat would add a lot to Obama's photo.

I don't think it works as well as the person who originally came up with the idea thought it would. But I wouldn't have come up with a better idea. In fact, I doubt there's another tab in the country that will catch my eye as much as this does.

It's just a football tab. There's one every year. It's fine with me that they went with something a little unique.

 

I'd love one of these as well!!!

 

Let me guess. You want an autographed copy with Obama on the cover, right?

 

I understand the sentiment, but I'm not sure either candidate was going to let themselves be pictured in a Gators or 'Noles jersey.

Hell, Obama might get some flack from FSU and Miami fans for wearing what appears to be very close to a blue and orange tie.

 

You talkin' to me? Are you talkin' to me?

 

I can't imagine the hoops and pre-conditions that had to be jumped through in order to make this happen.

Here's two other questions:

1) How many resources were spent on producing this one football tab that will still only cost 75 cents and still only be relevant for a short period of time?

2) How much advertising was sold for it?

I'm not saying we shouldn't strive for excellence. But part of the problem I have found with our industry is that we tend to ejaculate our excellence, and by that I mean we pour our heart and soul into one project, or one enterprise story, or one investigative story, but on the majority of days are content to put out a mediocre product. And while the prizes and accolades that will surely come by producing a section like this are great, in reality it is the day-to-day product that people end up judging us on.

 

Damn, isn't the Sentinel great ... putting out a football section whose cover says "Look at us, we got Obama and McCain," for an audience that wants to see Tebow.

There is nothing great about this. Just more self-serving bullshit from the "APSE award-winning" egomaniacs.

 

agree to a point on the covers, but they carried the theme inside to make it relevant. often, when papers try to run a theme through the section, it comes out as being pretty lame. here it doesn't, and I like that.

 

Count me as another who's not overly impressed.

Even less impressed with forcing a political "theme" on the football section (see other pages on Newspage Designer). That's always been my problem with themes on special sections. You're forcing something into the subject matter that does not necessarily go along with it.

In fact, it smacks of, "Look at us. We're smarter and edgier than your average football fan."

 

Sorry jps, the theme is lame.

But they'll win an APSE and the great Lynn Hoppes will again be hailed as one of the gods of journalism.