skbl17 188 Posted January 29, 2013 Share Posted January 29, 2013 11Alive News at 6:00 is finished; time for a review! I'm going to get the good stuff out of the way first: It's cleaner. Even this morning, I thought that the old look was a hot mess (that mid-cycle refresh didn't help much): the rundown was on the right, all of the other crap was on the bottom, the swooshes, sweeps, everything! I could imagine that the look was slightly overwhelming; the new look fixes almost all of this: everything's simple to read and better organized. The music sounds...nicer. After the "Apocalypse News Package" (- HulkieD) was introduced, it sounded ominous and depressing (which, at the time of the 2008 launch, made sense: Atlanta was at the tail end of a 100-year drought;) "This is Home" is actually an amazing piece of work by Gari: uplifting and authoritative. Plus, WXIA actually runs the local image campaign at the end of the newscast. For the intro, I was hoping they would use the KARE/WBIR version, but instead they used a different cut, which still sounds great. WXIA fixed the logo problem by making the time/temp bug vertical to fit the current logo. Now the nitpicks: Although the graphics are great overall, the combination of information at the bottom, I will admit, can get cluttered at times. (WXIA only) The WIZ was not eliminated; instead, it was adapted for the new graphics. (WXIA only) The 7-day forecast in the 6pm edition was off-center. The "Coming Up" graphic, at least on WXIA, has an annoying empty gray bar below it. I wish that the stations could get leeway with that. The "LIVE" bar atop the logo/time/temp bug should be moved a little bit to the left to better align with said bug. There were problems with the lower graphic at times, but that should be fixed as the new look "settles in". One word with transitions...swoosh. WGCL has this same problem; the swooshes as transitions will get annoying quick. Finally, if WXIA wants sponsor tags, they should have it at the beginning of ad breaks or as a pre-newscast sponsor plug. The ads in the L3's were plain annoying. I do believe that some of these problems will be eliminated soon, so not all hope is lost. Overall, this is a great look and the music is much improved! I give Gannett a B+. EDIT: No new set tonight, that comes next month! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
24994J 5276 Posted January 30, 2013 Share Posted January 30, 2013 11Alive News at 6:00 is finished; time for a review! I'm going to get the good stuff out of the way first... (WXIA only) The WIZ was not eliminated; instead, it was adapted for the new graphics. Call me stupid, but what is The WIZ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CircleSeven 1944 Posted January 30, 2013 Share Posted January 30, 2013 Its their "Weather Information Zone". That was their branding when Weather Plus was still around. And in some few markets the Weather Plus software is still around. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big Country News 435 Posted January 30, 2013 Share Posted January 30, 2013 My problem with the package is its blandness. I'm a fan of 3D, nice, sleek, and sometimes over-the-top graphics. I will agree that the old lower thirds were a problem, but a simple problem. This new package is also not unique, the 'modern' 'social' look has been done before. Other aspects of the change like "This is Home" and the USA Today color scheme are nice. I guess i'll just have to get used to it, seeing that Gannett is already rolling this out everywhere. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AaronQ 259 Posted January 30, 2013 Share Posted January 30, 2013 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aHlypYHcns8 WXIA Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ntropolis 593 Posted January 30, 2013 Share Posted January 30, 2013 (Also, holy crap, they air The Andy Griffith Show at 12:30 apparently? Must be an Atlanta tradition...) Must be like WDBJ in Roanoke... they've aired Andy at 5:30 for years. Surprising for a market like Atlanta though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tw-804 190 Posted January 30, 2013 Share Posted January 30, 2013 Must be like WDBJ in Roanoke... they've aired Andy at 5:30 for years. ...and WFMY in the Triad, too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AaronQ 259 Posted January 30, 2013 Share Posted January 30, 2013 http://www.11alive.com/video/breakingvideo.aspx WXIA severe weather coverage with the new graphics (live stream) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MidwestTV 1173 Posted January 31, 2013 Share Posted January 31, 2013 I hate their 7-day forecast. But I still don't understand WHY the hell Gannett has decided to make SUCH a big deal about their new graphics package to the point that all of their stations are having to do nearly full-length stories about it and even air promos a week before the fact. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AndrewPollard_ 6 Posted January 31, 2013 Share Posted January 31, 2013 I hate their 7-day forecast. But I still don't understand WHY the hell Gannett has decided to make SUCH a big deal about their new graphics package to the point that all of their stations are having to do nearly full-length stories about it and even air promos a week before the fact. Because people made SUCH a big deal about how the last package Sucked to the point they bitched endlessly on all the stations' websites to change it. They wanted these people to know about it. WPVI has a new logo and changed its graphics, yet never told me about it. You don't see me bitch about it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AaronQ 259 Posted February 1, 2013 Share Posted February 1, 2013 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C9BQHnpD1pY Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skbl17 188 Posted February 1, 2013 Share Posted February 1, 2013 WXIA's or Gannett's in general? Remember, the WXIA 7-day is the exact same as all of the others with the exception of the Wizometer numbers (which I hate anyway; I don't want my day based on a number!) EDIT: Another thing I like about these graphics is how easy it is to create mockups based on these. I hate their 7-day forecast. But I still don't understand WHY the hell Gannett has decided to make SUCH a big deal about their new graphics package to the point that all of their stations are having to do nearly full-length stories about it and even air promos a week before the fact. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MidwestTV 1173 Posted February 1, 2013 Share Posted February 1, 2013 WXIA's or Gannett's in general? Remember, the WXIA 7-day is the exact same as all of the others with the exception of the Wizometer numbers (which I hate anyway; I don't want my day based on a number!) EDIT: Another thing I like about these graphics is how easy it is to create mockups based on these. I mean Gannet's in general. Although the WIZ thing is also very annoying. I don't want to have to squint my eyes to look at the top of the box...why can't they just put the WIZ number up there where the forecast numbers are at? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jess 1110 Posted February 1, 2013 Share Posted February 1, 2013 I hate their 7-day forecast. But I still don't understand WHY the hell Gannett has decided to make SUCH a big deal about their new graphics package to the point that all of their stations are having to do nearly full-length stories about it and even air promos a week before the fact. They're doing it that way because it IS a radically different graphics format, at least from what they were using. While there is less clutter on the screen, some viewers will still interpret it as information overload because it's now all in one place rather than all over the screen. These stories and advance promos are meant to prepare those viewers for the new look and also to explain how to "read" it. Plus, like I keep saying, Gannett put a lot of thought into this look, from the graphics to the music. They should be promoting it - it's an extremely nice new image. What I find hilarious is that all of the stations are using the same exact copy to explain it. Oh, and there is one flaw to the package - and that's for breaking news. Like in stories, the "slug" remains up for the duration - but in breaking news situations, you want to present as much visual information to the viewer as possible, because new ones are tuning in all the time. This is why I like the cable-style lower thirds for breaking news - they keep cycling through information and it's easy to get up to speed on what's going on. Other station groups have adopted this, and Gannett's graphics are perfect for this sort of thing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big Country News 435 Posted February 1, 2013 Share Posted February 1, 2013 What I find hilarious is that all of the stations are using the same exact copy to explain it. Yes, I checked the 11 Alive Facebook page and saw that they used the version of the graphics which didn't have the Time/Temp on the right of the logo. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MidwestTV 1173 Posted February 2, 2013 Share Posted February 2, 2013 Something that bothers me though, or at least rather is a massive pet peeve of mine, is the fact that the color for sports is red. I don't associate red with sports, I associate red with severity, intensity, urgency, and, in the news world, breaking news. If it's not red, then it's either orange or yellow, mainly yellow (you can blame CNN for that one). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alaskanews 108 Posted February 2, 2013 Share Posted February 2, 2013 Oh, and there is one flaw to the package - and that's for breaking news. Like in stories, the "slug" remains up for the duration - but in breaking news situations, you want to present as much visual information to the viewer as possible, because new ones are tuning in all the time. This is why I like the cable-style lower thirds for breaking news - they keep cycling through information and it's easy to get up to speed on what's going on. Other station groups have adopted this, and Gannett's graphics are perfect for this sort of thing. In breaking news situations the story lineup line and the ticker line below it can be taken over for a two-line breaking news ticker. I don't know if every station is using it though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
abric 157 Posted February 2, 2013 Share Posted February 2, 2013 When the DC Metro area had delays due to snow this week, that two-line breaking news ticker was used. I have to find a pic of that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
squiggy 10 Posted February 4, 2013 Share Posted February 4, 2013 Here's the new WUSA 9 ID/sting [yt] [/yt] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CircleSeven 1944 Posted February 4, 2013 Share Posted February 4, 2013 Here's the new WUSA 9 ID/sting [yt]JHyR6skmqVc[/yt] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SterlingNorth 33 Posted February 5, 2013 Share Posted February 5, 2013 Back to WUSA 9, they seem much more comfortable in capitalizing and playing around with their name and logo, like with this variation for its ski sweepstakes. [ATTACH]1165.IPB[/ATTACH] Or this idea for an ad. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
compubit 670 Posted February 5, 2013 Share Posted February 5, 2013 Just came through Macon GA and caught WMAZ's news - just curious about when they switch to the new graphics: the "script" that most of the stations use won't work - as the station doesn't have the constant rundown on the right side, not the ticker, nor any continuous graphics... basically they're already in a minimalist mode... J Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
C Block 1488 Posted February 7, 2013 Share Posted February 7, 2013 As promised, here are some highlights of Monday's 6pm newscast on KUSA. You'll notice that they use the old Sports sting in it, though they debuted a new one in the new style tonight. I'll also upload some highlights of the 10pm open and the noon open soon. Be sure to watch the end too for a nice and fairly long closing: Now that I've seen it on a proper television... I love this look. For much of my lifetime, KUSA has always stayed with blue and red graphics that often veered on looking over the top. Even the 2008 standardized graphics never felt like much of a change from that. This look is not only completely different from what they've had before, but it's different from anything else anyone is doing nationally. The open and the supporting 3D elements aren't that strong, but the lower thirds and full screen graphics are perfect. The music isn't too exciting either, but it's nice to hear something new from Gari, and it's uplifting, which is a welcome change from the broken fax machine. I would have also liked to have seen a logo update or a new set, though we can't get everything we want, and there is something admirable about a nice desk with a city backdrop I guess. I have to admit that from what I've seen, I've been very impressed with KUSA recently. KMGH still feels like they're running on a skeleton staff with too many national packages, and KCNC's new tabloid feel and focus on consumer advocacy are unappealing. KUSA doesn't seem to have laid off as many people as the other stations have; their newer, younger hires in recent years have been really good; and they seem to always have a good mix of hard-hitting local stories. The fact that Gannett now seems to be serious about good design is a nice bonus. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rusty Muck 4167 Posted February 8, 2013 Share Posted February 8, 2013 Just came through Macon GA and caught WMAZ's news - just curious about when they switch to the new graphics: the "script" that most of the stations use won't work - as the station doesn't have the constant rundown on the right side, not the ticker, nor any continuous graphics... basically they're already in a minimalist mode... J WKYC quietly scrapped the Rundown shortly after Russ Mitchell joined the station early last year. They kept the "slug" at the bottom but otherwise had a minimalist look (well, as minimal as you **could** get with the old look). The gist of the basic script, however, remained pretty much the same. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alaskanews 108 Posted February 8, 2013 Share Posted February 8, 2013 their newer, younger hires in recent years have been really good; and they seem to always have a good mix of hard-hitting local stories. Glad to hear us new hires get the stamp of approval Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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