“Dapper Dunbar-Johnson” and the new IHT

Apr 8, 2009

UPDATE: Someone just created a Facebook group called “Keep the IHT: Just say no to NYT “Global Edition”.

Pegged to the launch of the new International Herald Tribune layout and website, Benjamin Li of Hong Kong-based Media magazine published a profile of the IHT’s publisher, Stephen Dunbar-Johnson.

The IHT, my former long-time employer, recently revamped the website and redesigned the print edition.

Not surprisingly, “Dapper Dunbar-Johnson”, as they call Stephen, speaks highly positively about the changes:

“From our point of view,it gives us an advantage to merge online rather than remain independent, as it’s about getting scale and marrying that scale with the technology of nytimes.com,”says Dunbar-Johnson. “The combination also provides advertisers with a much more significant global scale and regional targeting demographic profiles.”

~~(Apologies for not posting a link to the story, but Benjamin said his publication has not – and may never – put the story online. Not a policy I understand.)~~ The story is now available here.

Word on the street?

Among the many longtime IHT readers I have spoken with, many complain that falling print circulation makes a redesign of the paper edition equivalent to rearranging deck chairs on the Titanic. As for the Web integration with The New York Times website, there are complaints that the IHT is losing its identity.

My view:

The NY Times web integration is, to me, a great thing. Instead of a small web team in Paris cobbling together a site with too few resources, the IHT journalists can now work within the larger NY Times webiverse.

Led by Jonathan Landman (an editor for whom many reporters would walk through fire) the web team is ambitious, creative and pushing every boundary they can.

Moreover, one of the great strengths of the web is following links as you get interested in a story. By placing the NYT and IHT on the same platform there will definitely be more crossover. If I were still a reporter for the IHT, I would rejoice in the increased potential audience for my stories and new ways to use the web platform for storytelling.

As for the newspaper redesign, I think it looks fine. Readers ALWAYS complain about redesigns, even when they buy more papers as a result of changes. This is particularly true of the IHT readership, many of whom have an extremely tight emotional bond to the publication.

The NY Times wants to have a more clear global brand, with the IHT converging in style. I do not think the IHT would be a viable standalone product without the NY Times, so integration is inevitable.

I do have 2 complaints:

1- I mourn the loss of the IHT’s Dingbat (that strange object inserted above). It was distinctive and a great link back to the newspaper’s founder, James Gordon Bennett Jr. A truly remarkable man, for whose newspaper I was proud to write. In a similar vein, loss of the familiar and distinctive yellow corporate color is sad, but I presume that the NY Times’ blue has won the battle.

2- I am not a fan of extending the gothic typeface to include International. For me the contrast between the clean International vs gothic Herald Tribune emphasized the publication’s global scope. You can see the difference above (Yes, IHT junkies, I know that the old logo above is actually very old.)

What you think: Thumbs up or thumbs down?

Discussion

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View Comments for ““Dapper Dunbar-Johnson” and the new IHT”

provigil

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facebook-745460334

Stumbled across this from the graphic design assn., posted in April by a NYTimes reader in Paris who wishes the new IHT was even MORE like the Times. Yuk!

http://www.aiga.org/content.cf...

International Herald Tribune: Breathless in Paris
by Véronique VienneApril 28, 2009

One of the hardest things about moving to Paris is doing without The New York Times every morning. As well-designed as the online version is, it doesn’t compare with the printed edition. In fact, I find the difference between the two experiences surprisingly disturbing. The digital paper, updated on a near-constant basis, keeps scores on the latest developments, transforming reading the news into a spectator’s sport. The fiber-based original, in contrast, lets you contend with the information mano-a-mano, hand-to-hand, one rustling page at a time.

The redesigned opinion pages of the International Herald Tribune. (photo: Véronique Vienne)

But things are perking up. Since March 30, a pretty good facsimile of the Op-Ed page is now available at my local City of Light newsstand. As luck would have it, the editors of my favorite newspaper have taken over the International Herald Tribune, the famous American newspaper edited in Paris since 1887, and are turning it into the “global New York Times.” For a steep 2.50 euros—about 3.50 dollars—I can now buy a likeness of the Gray Lady from a sidewalk vendor on the Avenue de l’Opéra, right across the street from one of the 37 Starbucks now established in the French capital. You can’t stop progress. All I now need is for the Apple Store to open in the upscale shopping mall that’s under the Louvre museum, and I can pretend that I live in Manhattan.

At first glance, this latest incarnation of the Tribune looks the same as the Times. The typographical ingredients are familiar indeed: same chiseled Fraktur logo, same beautifully crafted Cheltenham display faces, same reader-friendly Imperial text type, same elegantly letter-spaced all-caps subheads, same handsome upper and lower case headlines, same tall and lithe columns—yet this identical twin feels totally different from its New York sibling. I would like to believe that the two papers are the same, but truth be told, I am disappointed. The new Tribune format feels too loose. For reasons having to do with the norms of European and Asian presses on which the IHT is printed, the paper is taller and wider than the NYT, its larger size an impediment when it comes to creating synergy between the various graphic components on the page. Imagine Times Square recreated on a big lot in Las Vegas, and you’ve got how it feels to open the new International Herald Tribune.

IHT.com is now global.nytimes.com and the print edition looks more like the Times, too. (photo: Véronique Vienne)

Jean Seberg (at right) sells the Tribune in the 1960 film Breathless.

This situation is doubly frustrating for the expat I am. I did not dislike the old Tribune, in spite of its dowdy format (heavy Poynter headlines and text, tight leading, blocky layouts). Though not smartly designed, it had a cult status here, in part because of the movie Breathless (A bout de souffle), in which boyish-looking Jean Seberg was seen strutting down the Champs-Elysées sporting a shirt embroidered with the logo of the Herald Tribune. Today, newspapers could not buy this type of product placement if they tried. So haunting was this 1960 filmic moment, courtesy of Jean-Luc Godard, that it had become an integral part of the image of the newspaper. For countless English-speaking readers worldwide, 250,000 of them, myself included, the name of the publication conjured up the memory of days gone by when American culture was synonymous with savvy, sophistication and style.

Not surprisingly, when some top New York Times editors suggested the old Tribune be terminated as such and be replaced by a spiffy international edition of the Times (the Manhattan paper assumed full ownership of the Paris daily in 2007), marketing studies revealed that the brand equity of the Tribune was too valuable to be discarded. Prominently displayed on newsstands in 180 countries, this 120-year-old media institution is a highly respected product. So, somewhat reluctantly, decision makers at the New York Times Company had elected to transform the IHT without changing its title, stipulating nonetheless that the new version had to reflect as much as possible the journalistic principles and the “seriousness” of the Times editorial direction.

In charge of masterminding this design operation was Tom Bodkin, associate editor and design director of the Times since 1987. With the help of art director Kelly Doe, Bodkin systematically itemized the visual components that contribute to creating a “perception of seriousness.” In order to explain to the Paris staff how to replicate the NYT format successfully, they had to draw a long list of directives. To begin with, no extrabold headlines! The typographical approach must be neutral, the text easy to read, with titles and subtitles that steer clear of sensationalism. The size of the letters should not be used to emphasize the importance of the news. More specific recommendations included narrow columns, tightly letter-spaced lines, informational headings and subheadings, graphic icons only whenever helpful, a limited number of typefaces, and, of course, a grid system promoting clarity. Bodkin and Doe made one last stipulation: under no circumstance should text or headlines be printed in color! This deliberate blandness, considered a quality at the NYT where impartiality is paramount, looked a little meek when transplanted abroad, in a different cultural context. Compared with the majority of European newspapers, the pages of the IHT today feel rather pale.

The International Herald Tribune’s nameplate section before (top half) and after the redesign (prototype above).

Betting on “seriousness” was a calculated risk The New York Times was willing to take in response to the challenge of free dailies and online newspapers. Editors were confident that IHT readers would respond positively and embrace the more structured format as more informative, and thus more entertaining. They did not think that their international audiences would be intimidated by the succinctly presented wealth of information, nor would they be put off by the “Anglo-Saxon” exactness of the more demanding Bodkin template. What the NYT editors did not measure, though, is the void the old Tribune would leave. Ah! To lean on the counter of a bistro, order a cup of Java, and, sidestepping the gossipy local press, open the fusty Herald Tribune to survey the latest dispatches from news services worldwide. Its uncool design was endearing. Cosmopolite yet at the same time foreign—conservative but oddly opinionated (sometimes disconcertingly so, for European readers)—the paper Jean Seberg was selling on the Champs-Elysées used to deliver a form of journalistic escapism.

Escapism is still what I seek when digging 2.50 euros from my bag to purchase a little piece of home. I fold the newspaper under my arm (making sure that its name is showing) and stroll leisurely down the avenue to a nearby café. I then sit down and unfurl my prize possession. Sure, the Tribune doesn’t give me the same sense of compactness and compression I came to associate with good reportages. But the intelligence of its visual vocabulary is utterly compelling, once I dig into it. As with The New York Times, I find myself eager to engage with it, eager to decipher its codes, eager to question its choices of images, eager to interact with its visual prompts. “Seriousness” is not solely about the way the news, opinions and commentaries are treated on paper, it is also about the way the readers are treated as they earnestly try to make sense of the complex headlines of the day.

Véronique Vienne’s more detailed analysis of the International Herald Tribune redesign appears in the April issue of étapes magazine (in French).

About the Author: Véronique Vienne is the author of a number of articles, essays and books on graphic design, illustration, photography and interior design. To be published this fall is her monograph on illustrator John Rombola, and a book titled Art Direction Explained, At Last, with co-author Steven Heller. She lives in Paris, France.
powerstaffing

This sample was probably not representative of the IHT's audience, but was also probably not a small section of the readership.As for the Web integration with The New York Times website, there are complaints that the IHT is losing its identity.
HR Hiranand

I totally concur: stop putzing around with frivoulous & contentious "re-designs" & focus on what MAKES The Herald Tribune / IHT invaluable: content & cogent opinion by qualified, intelligent reporting and contributors.
Philippe from Paris

Following the redesign I decided not to renew my subscription. If I want to read the NYT (which I like a lot) I can read it online or buy it (even if it is rather expensive over here). I liked the IHT because it was different, because it felt more european / international. Now, it just looks like a (badly designed) copy of the NYT, and I don't want that. I am especially disappointed by the typeface for "international", it is just plain ugly. Yes, maybe the pure content of the paper hasn't changed that much, that's why I will read NYT/IHT articles online, but the personal link I had with the newspaper (I have been subscribing to the IHT for years), the familiraty with the old layout, is now gone, and I don't see why I should pay for an ugly newspaper. Sorry, Dapper my money is now going to the Economist.
hmph

1. the IHT without the logo? such a quaint reminder of when american newspapers maintained their international bureaus...now lost in the sands of time, along with the pyramids, acropolis, some kind of carthaginian aqueduct, and farming before the days of john deere.
2. i don't know why they bother calling it the IHT at all if there's so much story overlap with the nyt. we need more than just the new york times doing an A section. one or two behemoth english language newspapers and hordes of flim flam blogs aren't good enough. decades from now, the world will be reading the china daily because these guys let market share dilute the quality of the product. i blame the new york times.
Matt

According to the profile Dapper Dunbar-Johnson is tall, good-looking and always impeccably dressed! Good enough reason to read the new-look IHT, I reckon!
P Clarke Thomas

I will miss the old logo.

Though I see that you'd have more resources available....I hope that the IHT doesn't become the NYT w/ a different letterhead. There were article in the IHT that were barely earmarked on the NYT. I prefer international news versus localized
Chris Nicholson

For readers attached to the IHT name, and curious about our new space at the Times, you can type in this URL -- global.nytimes.com/?iht -- and the last few characters at the end will give you an IHT at the top of the home page.
david houghton

I quite liked the old logo, though having looked at the new one i do feel that it has a much fresher look.
I would say that it would be nice for the IHT to adopt the "berliner" size rather than maintaining the broadsheet version. Most IHT readers seem to be on the go, and well traveled which would mean the "berliner" size format would make it easier to read?
Rolf Rykken

Totally echo Eric in Lyon: The NYTimes is NOT the IHT! The IHT has its own brandname, its own identity, its own international-news coverage history.

Rolf, Washington, DC
Eric in Lyon, France

If economies of scale is the question, the answer is not to change the name, logo or domain name. Back office integration happens all the time. But it doesn't have to show for your customers. The NYTimes is making a bad bet. It' the INTERNATIONAL Herald Tribune whereas the NYT is a newspaper from New York. The IHT is a beloved brand with name recognition across the globe. Why, oh why would you throw that out the window?
Abdel-Azim

Totally agree with you, I have no problem with the new layout, really I like it very much, Specially Life style Page, the front page i don't see a big Different to the readers eye except the logo (( I see the Egypt Copy, becz i'm working as a designer in DailyNewsEgypt)) I like the New Logo VERY MUCH, it's more CLEAR.
the web site is good looks more clear.
Thomas - as you say readers always complain about redesigns.
Nico S.

I found the applications in the 'old' IHT website especially intriguing, most notably the SpeakEasy application that reads out the sentences for you. Also the newspaper 'column' display mode was very attractive... I hope these things will be reintegrated again, because I REALLY REALLY miss those elements. It made IHT look sharp and snappy. Now the options are tuned down to comments, prints, reprints and share.
Claudia Gonzalez Gisiger

Horrible. Turns me off and makes me jump to the FT.
Alex

When working in banking in London I observed that many, especially those born before 1970 that followed the US markets, would have a Reuters and Bloomberg terminal on their desk, accompanied by a (paper) copy of the FT and IHT.

When asking about 'why IHT' the response was invariably "to follow an understanding of an internationally-orientated US viewpoint" which I found very interesting. The sophistication of Bloomberg or Reuters news and keyword searches were left largely unexplored, and RSS/syndication was an alien concept to this audience.

This sample was probably not representative of the IHT's audience, but was also probably not a small section of the readership.

I'd love to have a fly-on-the-wall observation of IHT discussions regarding this audience, and actual business-target expectations of the re-branding in detail. It would be interesting to see how this progresses.

Personal opinion:

The IHT is it's own brand. While the backend should can and should benefit from the economies of scale NYT can offer, I see the two publications as serving different audiences; by saying 'The Global Edition of the New York Times' it seems a subsidiary publication where in it's audience's (my) eyes it is not.

The front page is extremely busy. I find serif fonts hard to scan and titles and teasers in the same typeface hard to distinguish.

When clicking through to a story the header reads "TimesPeople Lets You Share and Discover the Best of NY..." - my IP is in China and I'm reading the IHT, why would I be interested in discovering the best of NY? When going through a proxy based in Brea CA the header remains the same. Perhaps something related to LA would be nice?

Each story has a large clear typeface - it's large enough it looks good in Serif, opposed to the front page where the font is smaller. Great to read visually, and always has been.

I miss the menu bars, and as you state the yellow. They were clear and, importantly, used larger fonts with less options, more intuitive.

Big problem - the sidebar has no 'similar stories' - this isn't hard to implement - and would keep me clicking though on the site far longer than a series of ads would. In a Google News and social driven age of links and recommendations why would I stay on the site, where would I go for more insight/information about one keyword - it it's not a clickable link I'll go straight back to the source which linked to the story, and not stay on IHT.

I do think the web development team has done a good job (aside from pushing for a related-stories block), my criticism is probably with the spec they were given.

Opps, this comment turned out far too long.
David Astley

I have no problem with the new layout, Thomas - as you say readers always complain about redesigns. But I can't read the paper anymore because the font size is too small. It's way way smaller than the Wall Street Journal or any other publication that I read. I contacted IHT and got a reply from Stephen Dunbar-Johnson advising that the small font size was only a problem in Israel and Malaysia where it was 4% smaller than it should be. But even if they increase it by 4%, I am not sure if I will be able to read it without a magnifying glass. I am temporarily overcoming the problem by having my staff blow up pages I want to read on the photocopier - but I can't do that when I am traveling.
Amber Garrison

Thumbs mostly up -- aside from nostalgia, I couldn't be happier that the IHT and NYT are in cahoots. Now I can easily toggle back and forth from an Amerocentric view of the world to a more global perspective, which I love.

Besides, this means my favorite yellow IHT mug is an antique!
Dashiell Gantner

I never realized I was a hater until the iht redesign.
Robert MacPherson

Totally agree with you re the nameplate, Thomas. On day one I failed to find the Trib easily on a London newsstand (remember the Trib often is sold at kiosks quarter-folded -- something the designers apparently failed to take on board).

Wild uninformed speculation is that this just another step towards IHT shutting down Paris desk and moving everything to NYT. Use of NYT typography (familar already to NYT deskers) informs that rumour.
Tristan Redman

NO! I don't like change! It's sad to see such an institution lose its identity. I'm sure some focus group would argue otherwise but the IHT brand is as strong and recognisable globally as the NYT's. And now it's all but gone.
C P Ho

IHT, I mourn your passing. With the Dingbat, you were the world's newspaper - and independent. Now you are just a paper, or two papers in one trying to go international. Mind you, I don't have anything against the NYT.
Stephanie Scawen

iht going tabloid - rather an odd experience. still the same paper. but as an ex tabloid hack you should tell the page designers that going tabloid does not mean keeping the same layout and just making everything smaller. it needs a complete redesign. the pages look overcrowded.

the web site is good - more content it seems - at least i'm reading more of it - so that's a plus!
Phil Cornwel-Smith

The website looks fine and clear, but the new paper layout appears pinched and grey. Everything is just too samey and flat. And it looks less inviting to read.

The titles sum it up; the old one had texture, variation, character, vibrancy and lineage without being too busy. The new title is simply flat, giving the same weight to every word and making the whole thing less legible. The new one has family resemblance to the NYT, but as a far longer title it doesn't impact like it used to. In terms of English usage, the old title emphasised Herald, the new one International. I guess they think herald sounds dated and international is modern, but herald is the stronger word.

It's the same problem inside. The columns don't look different, all suffering that grey, grey flatness. It makes the pages look bigger and more forebidding – not a good move in this era.

Also, the font is harder to read or smaller; hard to tell which. Are they trying to pack more words into fewer pages, with less white space, to save money on paper?