Conejo Post

Since the most recent redesign of the Ventura County Star’s  pages, I have been amazed at how large their headlines and photos are, especially on Sundays.

Well, today (12-13) I am even more amazed than usual at the front page of the Star’s business section.  The word, “BUZZING,” is a headline that goes clear across the page, 2 inches high, in bold caps.  This is in addition to a masthead that is 2-1/2 inches high (incidentally, with the day and date the hardest part to read).  Then the photo of a Camarillo artist holding a tequila bottle, under “BUZZING” is almost 8 inches by 11 inches.

Why are Sunday headlines and photos in the Star experiencing incredible inflation, and, least in this example, not much meaning?  (The complete message, including subheadline was, “Tequila contest win has Camarillo artist BUZZING”.)

Here are two possibilities:  1.  The financial challenges to the Star that necessitated the letting go of a lot of reporters means that the paper is filling space with mastheads, photos and headlines, rather than the text of stories.  2.  The jazzy graphics of a lot of internet websites are having an influence on print papers, and The Star is trying for a modern look.

Whatever the reasons for the change, I like my old Ventura County Star better!  However, I still must compliment the paper on their investigative stories.  For instance, they still do a great job of looking into county pension plans, or overtime pay for public safety employees.  So, my message to the Ventura County Star is to keep up the good work on the stories they do cover, and please think about going back to the old page design!