Layout allows for one to be creative, and creates a remarkable design to newspaper pages that appeals to the readers eye. When laying out the Perspective, students on the staff work with a program called Adobe InDesign.

InDesign provides the necessary applications to add drop caps to stories, text wrap articles around photos, add an array of color, create graphs and fact boxes, drop shadow pictures and boxes to give them a three-dimensional feel along with much more.

These elements enhance the appearance of the page and are fun in the process. When joining the newspaper myself, I had no idea that designing the page was something I would have the opportunity to do. Actually, when I joined the newspaper the layout of the page never came to my mind because I assumed it was something the newspaper staff was unable to do. I clearly was wrong, and am rather happy I was.

After joining the newspaper and realizing all you can do with it, especially layout, I was intrigued. After learning how to use InDesign I was able to be creative and layout Feature pages (more artsy then news pages).

My most recent page designs was the feature on Nick Thompson, who can complete the Rubik’s Cube in 74 seconds that appeared in the October 9^th edition along with the Broke feature that appeared in the October 29^th issue.

Anyone who has ever been interested in being creative and artsy, doing newspaper layout is great. Like I said before, being apart of the student newspaper and or any newspaper for that matter truly offers more than just the writing aspect.

Next week, advertising.

~Summer Gemmati

For Media Day I am looking for people to write about the sessions that they attended.

What I am looking for is:

1. A summary of the session you attended
2. Your thoughts and reactions: What did you learn, what you would like to see in future Media Days, What surprised you, etc.

 Your writings will be posted right here!  I’d love it if you would also include a brief bio on yourself (year graduate, major, special interest in comm., etc—1-2 sentences). This is a great opportunity to get your name out there in a different medium besides the one you’re used to working in!

Ideally I’d like the write-ups by Monday 11/12/07.  Please contact me if you can do this and to get information about submission. Thank you! ~~Sarah Whitehead, sw368@medaille.edu

In case you couldn’t tell from the glut of negative advertisements on radio and television, Election Day is quickly approaching. It’s easy to become disillusioned with the entire political process after being bombarded with name-calling politicians who heatedly accuse their opponents of everything from corruption to incompetence.

Have you stopped to educate yourselves about the candidates? A more important question is, are you registered to vote? If you’re not, it’s too late for you to make the 2007 election season, but you can get yourself registered for 2008.

I like to think that political communication is one of the more fascinating topics out there. I was a political science major, so I might be biased, but more than any other field, it mixes most conceivable communication subject into one great mess. There’s the interplay between mass (advertising) and interpersonal (campaigning) communication, broadcast strategy and media buying, social scientific research in polling, among others. Best of all, after each election, the whole strange cycle begins anew.

No one can tell you who to vote for, but if his campaign for the presidency picks up steam in the next 12 months, consider voting for my personal hero, Stephen Colbert, a man for whom truthiness and factiness still mean something.

Related Links:

Rock the Vote (http://www.rockthevote.com/home.php)

New York State Board of Elections (http://www.elections.state.ny.us/)

Indecision2008 (http://www.indecision2008.com/)

 ~Kara Kane, Assistant Director of Communications

The Department is pleased to announce it’s First Annual Media Day, coming up Friday November 9th. To view the schedule, click on the link below.

Attendees will receive a copy of the schedule at check-in Friday morning, which will tell you which sessions you signed up for.  We look forward to seeing you there!

Media Day Schedule