One story. Just words. Graphically impactful. Tragic.
With its singular focus, The front page of The New York Times, blew me away this morning, as did its “continued-on” pages and the article’s accompanying content.
As a man who’s earned my living by writing on vastly-different topics across many industries for the greater part of my career, the structure of the piece is perfect—spot on—for both digital and print delivery:
Headline:
U.S. DEATHS NEAR 100,000, AN INCALCULABLE LOSS
An emotional two-part dek:
1. They Were Not Simply Names on a List. They Were Us.
2. Numbers alone cannot possibly measure the impact of the coronavirus on America, whether it is the number of patients treated, jobs interrupted, or lives cut short. As the country nears a grim milestone of 100,000 deaths attributed to the virus, The New York Times scoured obituaries and death notices of the victims. The 1,000 people here reflect just 1 percent of the toll. None were mere numbers.
The story’s associated content is equally well thought out, deftly executed, sobering, and brilliant.
For deeper background into how The New York Times came to publish a Sunday edition, for the first time in over 40 years, without any graphics or photos, read TIMES INSIDER.
As powerful as the Times’ presentation is, it only represents 10% of the Americans who have died from COVID-19. 10%.