Some papers led with the story that wasn't news to many people – Hillary Clinton's bid for the presidency in 2008. Newsday got the headline right with "Can she win?" while the Chicago Tribune had an interesting juxtaposition of headlines: "Destiny calls" and "Clinton: I'm in to win."

Sunday is the day that many papers lead with explanatory journalism rather than straight news stories. Informational graphics or illustrations tend to provide more information than photographs for explainers. So these kinds of visual solutions appear more often on Sunday.

The Arizona Republic turned their front page into a chart on a highly relevant subject – mortgage fraud. The San Francisco Chronicle led with a dot-com story and made sure that every story and refer had a visual. The Marietta Daily Journal offered up a tall glass of water. The Daily Press used white space to effectively package an explainer about their most important local employer. The best front design today came from the Sun Journal in Lewiston, Maine.

The Sun Journal topped all the others for four important reasons:

1. Its high-impact, above-the-nameplate promo was impossible to ignore – proving once again that the eyes have it.

2. The headline on the main package asked the question that every story must answer to earn readership: how is this relevant to me?

3. The subject of the lead story was one of the most important to most readers: the education of their children.

4. The promo and the lead package worked in the box to promote single-copy sales. In most markets, Sunday is a bigger day for single-copy sales than any other.

5. The visual density above the fold was balanced by a subdued presentation beneath the fold, thus avoiding visual competion.



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