Papers to compete with Cherry-Coke Jello Mold

There’s lots of competition for readers’ attention today, what with Thanksgiving newspaper circulars to scour for Black Friday deals — and all the extra bing cherries Aunt Marcelline piled into her world-famous Cherry-Coke Jello Mold. So! Why not try something different on page one — as this sampling of Gannett papers shows?

First up is the Times Herald in Port Huron, Mich. (bigger view):

The Tulare (Calif.) Advance-Register (bigger view):

And The Arizona Republic (bigger view):

Got a front page to recommend? First, find it at the Newseum’s Gannett pages. Then paste the link in the comments section, below. Or e-mail via gannettblog[at]gmail[dot-com]. See Tipsters Anonymous Policy in the green sidebar, upper right.

[Images: Newseum]

Hot Off the Press: Kids are news at UK’s Daily Echo

Yesterday’s front page; bigger view. The Southern Daily Echo in Southampton features three youth-related stories on its front. It’s one of 17 dailies and about 300 weeklies in Gannett’s British Newsquest division, and the only one participating in the Newseum’s wonderful front-page database. I’d feature more Newsquest titles if they were available there.

Got a front page to recommend? First, find it at the Newseum’s Gannett pages. Then paste the link in the comments section, below. To e-mail confidentially, use this link to write gannettblog[at]gmail[dot-com]. See Tipsters Anonymous Policy in the green sidebar, upper right.

Hot Off the Press: Day 2 of Pensacola’s new design

That’s today’s front page; bigger view here. The Pensacola News Press continues its experiment with two editions — this one, for single-copy sales only, to appeal to younger readers.

[Image: Newseum]

Hot Off the Press: Hurricane Gustav front pages

Updated at 7:02 p.m. ET. Gustav was the big story in the most vulnerable places: Louisiana, Mississippi, Florida — but also further away. A sampling of today’s front pages; I especially liked the lede head at The Indianapolis Star.

The Daily Advertiser in Lafayette, La., two hours west of New Orleans. (Bigger view):

The Hattiesburg American, about two hours north of New Orleans. (Bigger view):

The Clarion-Ledger in Jackson, Miss., three hours north of New Orleans. (Bigger view):

Florida Today in Melbourne, about 11 hours to New Orleans. (Bigger view):

Green Bay Press-Gazette in Wisconsin, about 18 hours to New Orleans. (Bigger view):

The Star, about 12 hours to New Orleans. (Bigger view):

Got a front page to recommend? First, find it at the Newseum’s Gannett pages. Then paste the link in the comments section, below. To e-mail confidentially, use this link to write gannettblog[at]gmail[dot-com]. See Tipsters Anonymous Policy in the green sidebar, upper right.

[Image: Newseum]

Hot Off the Press: Detroit Free Press

Today’s print edition; click on the image for a bigger view. Like many newspapers, the Freep went big with its story about swimmer Michael Phelps, who won a record eighth gold medal yesterday at the Summer Games. “I’m more at a loss for words than I was yesterday,” Phelps told NBC after breaking Mark Spitz’s mark of seven golds in a single Olympics, the paper says today.

[Image: Newseum]

Hot Off the Press: USA Today

This morning’s front page; click on the image for a bigger view. The nation’s sports-centric daily offers a Summer Olympics analysis today, as the opening ceremonies launch the biggest sports event of the year. “China will win the gold medal count at the Beijing Olympics, with 51 golds to the Unites States’ 43, while the USA is likely to retain a slight edge in the overall medal count, 104-97,” reporter Vicki Michaelis predicts. “If the predictions hold, it will mark the first time in 72 years that a country besides the USA or Soviet Union claims the most gold medals at a Summer Games.”

[Image: Newseum]

Hot Off the Press: Detroit Free Press

Today’s edition; click on the image for a bigger view. No more than 116 employees applied for 150 buyouts at the newspaper and at two sister businesses — despite a threat of involuntary layoffs if an insufficient number of volunteers stepped forward.

The Freep at a glance:

• President, Publisher and CEO of Detroit Newspaper Partnership: David Hunke
• Vice President and Editor: Paul Anger
• Founded: 1831
• Joined Gannett: 2005
• Circulation: 346,209, daily; 622,717, Sunday

[Image: Newseum; circulation data, 2007 Annual Report]

Hot Off the Press: Statesman Journal

Today’s print edition; click on the image for a bigger view. The paper named a new publisher yesterday — Desert Sun Editor Steve Silberman — as last month’s Friday Afternoon Massacre continued to roil Gannett’s top management ranks.

[Image: Newseum]

Hot Off the Press: The Arizona Republic

Today’s print edition; click on the image for a bigger view. The Phoenix paper, Gannett’s largest by circulation after USA Today, offers a new angle on the mortgage crisis: “As the number of home foreclosures escalates, many distressed homeowners are left with one more difficult task – giving up their pets,” reporter Samantha Hauser writes today. “‘Foreclosure pets,'” as they’ve come to be known, have dramatically increased the number of animals in shelters across the Valley. The Arizona Humane Society has received more than 1,000 abandonment calls this year, nearly double the number at this time last year.”

The article also points to the Republic‘s Pets page, where readers are encouraged to comment on the story, and start a pets blog.

Earlier: How blogging changed my view of journalism

Related: The New York Times explains why hotel heiress Leona Helmsley bequeathed up to $8 billion for the care of dogs

Does your paper or TV station have a pets site worth recommending? Post a note in the comments section, below. To e-mail confidentially, use this link from a non-work computer; see Tipsters Anonymous Policy in the green sidebar, upper right.

Hot Off the Press: Southern Daily Echo

This morning’s print version; click on the image for a bigger view. One of 17 dailies in Gannett’s British Newsquest division, the Echo‘s lede story today is a classic tabloid tale: “A mother told a court how she shopped her own son to the police because she believed he had beaten a man and left him for dead,” reporter Melanie Adams writes. “Hilary Kellett said she was violently sick at the thought her ‘own flesh and blood’ could have been responsible for the terrible injuries suffered by Scott Speirs during an attack in a Southampton park.'”

Got a front page to recommend? First, find it at the Newseum’s Gannett pages. Then paste the link in the comments section, below. To e-mail confidentially, use this link from a non-work computer; see Tipsters Anonymous Policy in the green sidebar, upper right.