This is on the poynter site:
http://poynter.org/content/content_view.asp?id=131558&sid=11

"Meet early and often with all staffers to plan major projects," said Kelli Sullivan, Los Angeles Times deputy design director for news projects. "The best work is done through collaboration and teamwork," Sullivan said, the lead designer on the paper's 2007 Pulitzer Prize-winning series "Altered Oceans."

Her advice: Determine space and color needs early to get the best project, perhaps holding it until you have the proper amount of space. Edit tightly to play key elements well, and work through multiple versions to improve design. Be ruthless when editing photos and graphics, and remove clutter. "Our motto is, 'Keep things simple.' "

She'll break design rules for special projects, such as a front-page magazine approach to "toxin tide," and use "quiet" graphics and headlines on an account of war veterans' traumatic injuries.



I like this because I think it neatly illustrates something we've talked about in class: letting the story dictate the design. The rest of the article is interesting, too, and it brings up something I'd like to ask for everyone's opinion on: is it okay to run 'busy' graphics and sensational stories (with photos) IF it reaches more readers? Or are we pandering to the "lowest common denominator" or people's desire for "sensationalism"? When does it become tabloid journalism?