USA Today Warning: You are not logged in. Your IP address will be publicly visible if you make any edits. If you log in or create an account, your edits will be attributed to your username, along with other benefits.Anti-spam check. Do not fill this in! ==Layout and format== [[File:USA Today cover page.jpg|thumb|Cover page used for February 5, 2009]] ''USA Today'' is known for news in compact, easy-to-read-and-comprehend stories. In the main edition circulated in the United States and [[Canada]], each edition consists of four sections: News (the "front page" section), Money, Sports, and Life. Since March 1998, the Friday edition of Life has been split into two sections: the regular Life focusing on entertainment (subtitled ''Weekend''; section E), which features television reviews and [[TV listings|listings]], a [[DVD]] column, [[Film criticism|film reviews]] and trends, and a travel supplement called ''Destinations & Diversions'' (section D). The international edition of the paper features two sections: News and Money in one; with Sports and Life in the other. Atypical of most daily newspapers, the paper does not print on Saturdays and Sundays; the Friday edition serves as the weekend edition. ''USA Today'' has published special Saturday and Sunday editions in the past: the first issue released during the standard calendar weekend was published on January 19, 1991, when it released a Saturday "Extra" edition updating coverage of the [[Gulf War]] from the previous day; the paper published special seven-day-a-week editions for the first time on July 19, 1996, when it published special editions for exclusive distribution in the host city of [[Atlanta]] and surrounding areas for the two-week duration of the [[1996 Summer Olympics]].<ref name=timeline/> ''USA Today'' prints each complete story on the front page of the respective section with the exception of the cover story. The cover story is a longer story that requires a jump (readers must turn to another page in the paper to complete the story, usually the next page of that section). On certain days, the news or sports section will take up two paper sections, and there will be a second cover story within the second section. Each section is differentiated by a certain color in a box on the top-left corner of the first page; the principal section colors are blue for News (section A), green for Money (section B), red for Sports (section C), and purple for Life (section D); in the paper's early years, the Life and Money sections were also assigned blue nameplates and spot color, as the presses used at ''USA Today''{{'}} printing facilities did not yet accommodate the use of other colors to denote all four original sections.<ref name="garcia-usatoday4">{{cite web|title=USA Today turns 30-Part 4-The first newspaper to do that tango of the serious and the silly|url=http://www.garciamedia.com/blog/usa_today_turns_30-part_4-the_first_newspaper_to_do_that_tango_of_the_serio|author=Mario R. García|website=García Media|date=September 12, 2012}}</ref> Orange is used for bonus sections (sections E+), which are published occasionally for [[business travel]] trends and the [[Olympic Games|Olympics]]. Other bonus sections for sports (such as for the [[PGA Tour]] preview, [[NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship|NCAA basketball tournaments]], [[Memorial Day]] auto races ([[Indianapolis 500]] and [[Coca-Cola 600]]), [[National Football League|NFL]] opening weekend and the [[Super Bowl]]) previously used the orange color, but later changed to the regular sports red in their sports bonus sections. To strengthen their association with ''USA Today'', Gannett incorporated the ''USA Today'' color scheme into a graphics package for TV news programming that was phased in from late 2012 across its television station group (which was spun-off in July 2015 into the separate broadcast and digital media company [[Tegna, Inc.|Tegna]]). The package uses the color scheme in a rundown graphic on most stations persisting throughout their newscasts, as well as bumpers for individual story topics.<ref name=tvnc-newgraphics>{{cite news | title=Gannett Stations Clean Up Their Graphics| url=https://tvnewscheck.com/article/64783/gannett-stations-clean-up-their-graphics/ | first=Diana | last=Marszalek | website=TVNewsCheck | date=January 15, 2013}}</ref> In many ways, ''USA Today'' breaks the traditional newspaper layout. Some examples of its divergence from tradition include using the left-hand quarter of each section as "reefers" (front-page paragraphs ''referring'' to stories on inside pages<ref>{{cite web |title=Reefer, noun 3 |url=http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/reefer|website=Dictionary.com}}</ref>), sometimes using sentence-length [[blurb]]s to describe stories inside. The lead reefer is the cover page feature "Newsline", which shows summarized descriptions of headline stories featured in all four main sections and any special sections. As a national newspaper, ''USA Today'' cannot focus on the weather for any one city. Therefore, the entire back page of the News section is used for weather maps of the [[contiguous United States|continental United States]], [[Puerto Rico]] and the [[United States Virgin Islands|U.S. Virgin Islands]], and temperature lists for many cities throughout the U.S. and the world. Temperatures for individual cities on the primary forecast map and temperature lists are suffixed with a one- or two-letter code, such as "t" for [[thunderstorm]]s, referencing the expected weather conditions. The colorized forecast map was created by staff designer George Rorick (who left ''USA Today'' for a similar position at ''[[The Detroit News]]'' in 1986), and was copied by newspapers around the world, breaking from the traditional style of monochrome contouring or simplistic text to denote temperature ranges.<ref name="garcia-usatoday2"/><ref name="garcia-usatoday3">{{cite web|title=USA Today turns 30-Part 3—A weather map that created a global tsunami|url=http://www.garciamedia.com/blog/usa_today_turns_30-part_3--a_weather_map_that_created_a_global_tsunami | author=Mario R. García|website=García Media |date=September 11, 2012}}</ref> National precipitation maps for the next three days (the next five days before the 2012 redesign), and four-day forecasts and [[air quality index]]es for 36 major U.S. cities (16 cities prior to 1999) – with individual cities color-coded by the temperature contour corresponding to the given area on the forecast map – are also featured. Weather data is provided by [[AccuWeather]], which has served as the forecast provider for ''USA Today'' for most of the paper's existence (except from January 2002 to September 2012, when forecast data was provided by [[The Weather Channel]] through a long-term multimedia content agreement with Gannett).<ref>{{cite press release |title=AccuWeather Announces New Partnership With USA Today |url=http://www.accuweather.com/en/weather-news/usa-today-accuweather-partnership/73810 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120917022217/http://www.accuweather.com/en/weather-news/usa-today-accuweather-partnership/73810 |url-status=dead |archive-date=September 17, 2012 |website=[[AccuWeather]] |publisher=AccuWeather, Inc. |date=September 17, 2012 }}</ref><ref>{{cite press release | title=AccuWeather Chosen by USA Today to Help Deliver the News of the Future | url=https://www.accuweather.com/en/press/73792 | publisher=[[AccuWeather]] | date=September 14, 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite press release |title=The Weather Channel is Named Premier Weather Provider for USA Today | url=https://www.bloomberg.com/press-releases/2002-01-14/the-weather-channel-is-named-premier-weather-provider-for-usa-ii7ptfu8 | publisher=[[Business Wire]] | via=[[Bloomberg News]] | date=January 14, 2002}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=AccuWeather celebrates 50-year anniversary| url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/capital-weather-gang/post/accuweather-celebrates-50-year-anniversary/2012/11/15/8c03d930-2f49-11e2-9f50-0308e1e75445_blog.html | first=Jason | last=Samenow| newspaper=[[The Washington Post]] | date=November 15, 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite news | url=http://www.statecollege.com/news/local-news/accuweather-commemorates-50-years-with-yearlong-celebration,1183951/ | title=AccuWeather Commemorates 50 Years With Year-Long Celebration | first=Laura | last=Nichols | website=The State College | date=November 19, 2012 | access-date=October 24, 2016 | archive-date=October 25, 2016 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161025061329/http://www.statecollege.com/news/local-news/accuweather-commemorates-50-years-with-yearlong-celebration,1183951/ | url-status=dead }}</ref> In the bottom left-hand corner of the weather page is "Weather Focus", a graphic which explains various meteorological phenomena. On some days, the Weather Focus could be a photo of a rare meteorological event. On business holidays or days when bonus sections are included in the issue, the Money and Life sections are usually combined into one section, while combinations of the Friday Life editions into one section are common during quiet weeks. Advertising is often covered in the Monday Money section, with a review of a recent television ad, and after [[Super Bowl Sunday]], a review of the ads aired during the broadcast with the results of the ''Ad Track'' live survey. Stock tables for individual stock exchanges (comprising one subsection for companies traded on the [[New York Stock Exchange]], and another for companies trading on [[NASDAQ]] and the [[American Stock Exchange]]) and [[Mutual fund|mutual indexes]] were discontinued with the 2012 redesign due to the myriad electronic ways to check individual stock prices, in line with most newspapers. Book coverage, including reviews and a national sales chart which debuted on October 28, 1994, is seen on Thursdays in Life, with the full [[Nielsen ratings|A.C. Nielsen television ratings]] chart printed on Wednesdays or Thursdays, depending on release. The paper also publishes the [[Mediabase]] survey for several genres of music, based on radio airplay on Tuesdays, along with their own chart of the top ten singles in general on Wednesdays. Because of the same limitations as its nationalized forecasts, the television page in Life – which provides [[prime time]] and [[late night television|late night]] listings (running from 8:00 p.m. to 12:30 a.m. [[Eastern Time Zone|Eastern Time]]) – incorporates boilerplate "[[Local news]]" or "[[Local programming]]" descriptions to denote time periods in which the five major English language broadcast networks ([[American Broadcasting Company|ABC]], [[NBC]], [[CBS]], [[Fox Broadcasting Company|Fox]] and [[The CW]]) cede airtime to allow their [[owned-and-operated station|owned]] and [[network affiliate|affiliated]] stations to carry [[broadcast syndication|syndicated programs]] or local newscasts. The television page has never carried local scheduling information similar to those in local newspapers. Like most national papers, ''USA Today'' has no [[comic strip]]s. [[File:USA Today building.jpg|thumb|left|''USA Today'' is headquartered in [[Tysons Corner, Virginia]]<!-- Despite the McLean, VA address, the HQ is in Tysons Corner -->.]] One of the staples of the News section is "Across the USA", a state-by-state roundup of headlines. The summaries consist of paragraph-length [[Associated Press]] reports highlighting one story in each state, the [[Washington, D.C.|District of Columbia]], and one [[Territories of the United States|U.S. territory]]. Similarly, the "For the Record" page of the Sports section (which features sports scores for the previous four days of league play plus individual non-league events, seasonal league statistics and wagering lines for that day's games) previously featured a rundown of winning numbers from the previous deadline date for [[Lotteries in the United States|all participating state lotteries]] and individual multi-state lotteries. Some traditions have been retained. The [[news style|lead story]] still appears on the upper-right side of the front page. Commentary and political cartoons occupy the last few pages of the News section. Stock and mutual fund data are presented in the Money section. But ''USA Today'' is sufficiently different in aesthetics to be recognized on sight, even in a mix of other newspapers, such as at a [[newsstand]]. The overall design and layout of ''USA Today'' has been described as [[neo-Victorian]].<ref>{{cite web | title=After Modernism | url=http://formofnews.pbworks.com/w/page/13852307/Chapter%201%20%28part%205%29 | first=Kevin G. | last=Barnhurst | work=American Media in the XX Century: Chapter 1 (part 5) | publisher=University of Illinois at Chicago | year=2006 | quote=The mélange of styles and practices in printed and now web-based newspapers, although postmodern in terms of scholarly and design thinking, might more meaningfully be understood as neo-Victorian. The new styles, embodied most famously in ''USA Today'' and its clones, mark a return to the mystifying abundance of facts and stories that newspapers of the industrial revolution made visually present to readers.}}</ref> On most of the sections' front pages, in the lower left-hand corner, are "USA Today Snapshots" graphs which offer statistics on lifestyle interests according to the section (for example, a snapshot in "Life" could show how many people tend to watch a certain genre of television show based upon their mood). These "Snapshots" graphs employ icons roughly pertaining to the graph's subject (using the example above, the graph's bars could be made up of several TV sets, or ended by one). Snapshots are loosely based on research by a national institute (with the credited source in fine print below the graph). The newspaper also features an occasional magazine supplement called ''Open Air'', which launched on March 7, 2008, and appears several times a year. Other [[advertorial]]s appear throughout the year, mainly on Fridays.<ref>{{cite news | url=https://redesign.adweek.com/digital/usa-today-launches-open-air/ | title=USA Today Launches "Open Air" | work=[[AdWeek]] | date=December 10, 2007 | url-access=subscription | access-date=March 27, 2020 | archive-date=March 27, 2020 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200327151553/https://redesign.adweek.com/digital/usa-today-launches-open-air/ | url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>{{cite news | url=https://www.mediapost.com/publications/article/72444/gannett-to-launch-open-air-mslo-shutters-bluep.html | title=Gannett To Launch 'Open Air', MSLO Shutters 'Blueprint' | first=Erik | last=Sass | work=[[MediaPost]] | date=December 11, 2007}}</ref> ===Opinion section=== The opinion section prints ''USA Today'' editorials, columns by guest writers and members of the editorial board of contributors,<ref>{{cite news | title=USA Today's Opinion columnists | url=https://www.usatoday.com/news/opinion/USA-Today-board-of-contributors.htm | newspaper=USA Today | publisher=[[Gannett]] | date=August 29, 2011}}</ref> letters to the editor, and editorial cartoons. One unique feature of the ''USA Today'' editorial page is the publication of opposing points of view: alongside the editorial board's piece on the day's topic runs an opposing view by a guest writer, often an expert in the field. The opinion pieces featured in each edition are chosen by the Board of Contributors, which is separate from the paper's news staff.<ref name=debate>{{cite news | title=About USA Today Editorials/Debate | url=https://www.usatoday.com/news/opinion/USAToday-editorials-debate.htm | newspaper=USA Today | publisher=[[Gannett]] | date=April 6, 2010}}</ref> From 1999 to 2002 and again from 2004 to 2015, the editorial page editor was Brian Gallagher, who has worked for the newspaper since its founding.<ref>{{cite press release | url=https://www.cision.com/us/2015/05/changes-at-usa-today-editorial-board/ | title=Changes at USA Today Editorial Board | publisher=[[Cision]] | date=May 15, 2015}}</ref> Other members of the editorial board included deputy editorial page editor Bill Sternberg, executive forum editor John Siniff, op-ed/forum page editor Glen Nishimura, operations editor Thuan Le Elston, letters editor Michelle Poblete, web content editor Eileen Rivers, and editorial writers Dan Carney, George Hager, and Saundra Torry.<ref>{{cite news | title=USA Today's Editorial Board | url=https://www.usatoday.com/news/opinion/USAToday-editorial-board.htm | newspaper=USA Today | publisher=[[Gannett]] | date=April 6, 2010}}</ref> The newspaper's website calls this group "demographically and ideologically diverse."<ref name=debate/> Beginning with the [[1984 United States presidential election]]'', USA Today'' did not endorse candidates for the [[President of the United States]] or any other state or federal political office, a policy which has been re-evaluated during each four-year election cycle by the paper's Board of Contributors through an independent process, with any decision to override the policy based on a consensus vote in which fewer than two of the editorial board's members dissent or hold differing opinions.<ref>{{cite news | url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/opinion/2016/09/29/donald-trump-editorial-board-al-neuharth-editorials-debates/91294382/ | title=Why we're breaking tradition: Our view | newspaper=USA Today | publisher=[[Gannett]] | date=September 29, 2016}}</ref> For most of its history, the paper's political editorials (most of them linked to the presidential election cycle) had focused instead on major issues based on the differing concerns of voters, the vast array of information on these themes, and the board's aim to offer a fair viewpoint through the diverse political ideologies of its members and avoid reader perceptions of bias. The avoidance of political editorials played a great part in ''USA Today''{{'s}} long-standing reputation for "fluff", but after its 30th anniversary revamp, the paper took a more active stance on political issues, calling for stronger gun laws after the [[Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting]] in 2012. It heavily criticized the [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican Party]] for both the [[2013 government shutdown]] and the 2015 revolts in the [[United States House of Representatives]] that ended with the resignation of [[John Boehner]] as House Speaker. It also called out then-[[President of the United States|President]] [[Barack Obama]] and other top members of the [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democratic Party]] for what it perceived as "inaction" during 2013–14, particularly over the [[Global surveillance disclosures (2013–present)|NSA scandal]] and the [[ISIL beheading incidents]]. The editorial board broke from its "non-endorsement" policy for the first time on September 29, 2016, when it published an op-ed piece condemning the candidacy of [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican]] nominee [[Donald Trump]], calling him "unfit for the presidency" due to his inflammatory campaign rhetoric (particularly that aimed at the press, with certain media organizations being openly targeted and even banned from campaign rallies, including ''[[The New York Times]]'', ''[[The Washington Post]]'', [[CNN]] and the [[BBC]], military veterans who had been prisoners of war, including 2008 Republican presidential candidate and Vietnam War veteran [[John McCain]], immigrants, and various ethnic and religious groups); his temperament and lack of financial transparency; his "checkered" business record; his use of false and hyperbolic statements; the inconsistency of his viewpoints and issues with his vision on domestic and foreign policy; and, based on comments he had made during his campaign and criticisms by both [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democrats]] and Republicans on these views, the potential risks to national security and constitutional ethics under a Trump administration, asking voters to "resist the siren song of a dangerous demagogue".<ref>{{cite news | title=USA Today's Editorial Board: Trump is 'unfit for the presidency' | url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/opinion/2016/09/29/dont-vote-for-donald-trump-editorial-board-editorials-debates/91295020/ | newspaper=USA Today | publisher=[[Gannett]] | date=September 29, 2016}}</ref> The board wrote that the piece was not a "qualified endorsement" of Democratic nominee [[Hillary Clinton]], for whom it was unable to reach a consensus (some editorial board members expressed that Clinton's public service record would help her "serve the nation ably as its president", while others had "serious reservations about [her] sense of entitlement, [...] lack of candor and [...] [[Hillary Clinton email controversy|extreme carelessness in handling classified information]]"), suggesting instead [[tactical voting]] against Trump and GOP seats in swing states, advising voters to decide whether to vote for either Clinton, [[Libertarian Party (United States)|Libertarian]] nominee [[Gary Johnson]], [[Green Party of the United States|Green Party]] nominee [[Jill Stein]] or a write-in candidate for president; or to focus on Senate, House and other down-ballot political races.<ref>{{cite news | title=USA Today maroons readers with un-endorsement of Donald Trump | url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/erik-wemple/wp/2016/09/30/usa-today-maroons-readers-with-un-endorsement-of-donald-trump/| first=Erik | last=Wemple | newspaper=[[The Washington Post]] |date=September 30, 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite news | title=USA Today breaks non-endorsement tradition | url=http://www.cbsnews.com/news/usa-today-breaks-non-endorsement-tradition-calls-donald-trump-unfit-for-the-presidency/ | first=Emily | last=Schultheis | work=[[CBS News]] | date=September 29, 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite news | title='Don't vote for Trump,' says USA Today in first presidential endorsement in its history | url=https://www.latimes.com/nation/politics/trailguide/la-na-live-updates-trailguide-09292016-htmlstory.html#dont-vote-for-trump-says-usa-today-in-first-presidential-endorsement-in-its-history | first=Melanie | last=Mason | work=[[Los Angeles Times]] |date=September 29, 2016 | url-access=subscription }}</ref> In February 2018, ''USA Today'' published an [[op-ed]] by [[Jerome Corsi]], the DC bureau chief for the fringe conspiracy website [[InfoWars]].<ref name="Darcy-2018">{{Cite news | url=https://money.cnn.com/2018/02/28/media/usa-today-infowars-op-ed/index.html | title=USA Today publishes op-ed by InfoWars conspiracy theorist | last=Darcy | first=Oliver | work=[[CNN]] | date=February 28, 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite news | url=https://www.salon.com/2018/02/28/usa-today-published-an-op-ed-from-a-conspiracy-theorist-who-works-for-alex-jones_partner/ | title=USA Today published an op-ed from a conspiracy theorist who works for Alex Jones | first=Eric | last=Hananoki | work=[[Salon (website)|Salon]] | date=February 28, 2018}}</ref> Corsi, a prominent [[Conspiracy theory|conspiracy theorist]], was described by ''USA Today'' as an "author" and "investigative journalist".<ref name="Darcy-2018" /> Corsi was a prominent proponent of the [[Barack Obama citizenship conspiracy theories|false conspiracy theory]] that Barack Obama was not a US citizen, and Infowars has promoted conspiracy theories such as [[9/11 conspiracy theories|9/11 being an "inside job."]]<ref name="Darcy-2018" /> In October 2018, ''USA Today'' was criticized by [[NBC News]] for publishing an editorial by President Trump that was replete with inaccuracies.<ref>{{Cite news| url=https://www.nbcnews.com/tech/tech-news/usa-today-criticized-printing-trump-op-ed-despite-inaccuracies-n918536 | title=USA Today criticized for printing Trump op-ed despite alleged inaccuracies | work=[[NBC News]] | date=October 10, 2018}}</ref> ''[[The Washington Post]]'' fact-checker said that "almost every sentence contained a misleading statement or a falsehood."<ref>{{Cite news | url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2018/10/10/fact-checking-president-trumps-usa-today-op-ed-medicare-for-all/ | title=Analysis {{!}} Fact-checking President Trump's USA Today op-ed on 'Medicare-for-All' | first=Glenn | last=Kessler | newspaper=[[The Washington Post]] | date=October 10, 2018}}</ref> In 2020, ''USA Today'' endorsed a presidential candidate for the first time, [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democratic]] nominee [[Joe Biden]]. The newspaper also published an opposing editorial by Vice President [[Mike Pence]], which called for his and Trump's re-election.<ref>{{cite news |last=Fischer |first=Sara |title=USA Today breaks tradition by endorsing Joe Biden |url=https://www.axios.com/usa-today-endorsement-joe-biden-president-c61097f9-963d-4eac-a9c2-e3e865456f56.html |work=[[Axios (website)|Axios]] |date=October 20, 2020 |access-date=October 20, 2020}}</ref> Summary: Please note that all contributions to Christianpedia may be edited, altered, or removed by other contributors. If you do not want your writing to be edited mercilessly, then do not submit it here. You are also promising us that you wrote this yourself, or copied it from a public domain or similar free resource (see Christianpedia:Copyrights for details). Do not submit copyrighted work without permission! Cancel Editing help (opens in new window) Discuss this page