• by September 12, 2000

By Anya Khait

The Boston Globe, New England's largest newspaper, takes on a new look this week, as the paper debuts a new design on Wednesday, September 13, and then begins producing six new and updated sections throughout the month, focusing on local and business news, home news, careers, and classified advertising. The new-look Boston Globe is aimed at a sharper presentation of the news, with updated typography and graphics, a better organization of the paper, and an improved ease of use for time-pressed readers. It is the first re-design of the paper in 10 years. On Wednesday, September 13, a new biotechnology section will become part of the Globe's Business section, focusing on one of the area's booming industries and complementing the Globe's recently increased coverage of the high-tech industry. Life At Home, a revitalized At Home section, begins Thursday, September 14 and will appear weekly. Published for six regions for local advertisers, it will contain expanded editorial content focusing on such subjects as decoration, lifestyles, entertaining, gardening, and renovation. BostonWorks, a revamped help wanted classified section that will include editorial material about career advice debuts Sunday, September 17. BostonWorks will link to bostonworks.com, a site on the Globe's website at boston.com. Also appearing on the same day will be a revamped Business&Money section, containing new features on the economy and markets, more stories, and a "new economy" focus, along with several pages of news and information on personal finance. And on September 28, two new sections become part of the Globe, Marketplace and Globe West, both sections appearing every Thursday. Globe West will be a minimum 16-page stand-alone section reaching 35 cities and towns west of Boston. It will be published in four editions, each one covering 6-11 communities and providing more town and school news, local voices, and information on dining, real estate, events, senior citizens and high-school sports. Globe West will also appear on Sundays, replacing the previous West Weekly section. Marketplace, another new stand-alone section, features classified advertising and will offer articles on real estate, employment, and autos. It will also be published in six editions for local advertisers. The redesign and introduction of several new sections this month follows the Globe's conversion to a 50-inch web width, a year-plus long project that resulted in a paper of slightly smaller size. The length (21 inches) remains the same, but the width of a single page is reduced one inch to approximatley 12.5 inches, making it more comfortable for readers to handle. Many newspapers throughout the country, including those in Washington D.C., Los Angeles, Denver and Cleveland, have already converted to the smaller size with positive reader reaction, and others are in the process.

- MediaPost Staff Writer Anya Khait may be reached at anya@mediapost.com