Dubai: The newspaper in your hands this morning has those two elements that we like so much—the new and the familiar.

Yes, it is a new, easier to carry and easier to read Gulf News, in the Berliner format. It is also the same Gulf News that you have come to accept as a member of the family, a daily visitor that informs you, entertains you and makes you smarter.

While the packaging is new, evolved during months of preparation and hard work by the talented Gulf News team with whom I have had the pleasure of working as a consultant, a lot of what is here today is familiar, but improved.

I started working with Gulf News almost 10 years ago, helping with the first major redesign. Since then, I have continued to come to work with Gulf News team. During that time I have witnessed a constant evolution, not just in the design, but also in content, storytelling techniques, and entry into digital platforms, plus the rise of the printed newspaper as one of the most award-winning in the field of graphics and design.

Gulf News is #1

You are aware of Gulf News’ impact in your life, as demonstrated by recent figures from
the Arab Media Outlook,which show that Gulf News is the most read newspaper in the UAE, with the highest number of paid subscribers.

This is no small accomplishment in an age in which media face tremendous competition, not just from other media, but by such factors as lack of time, which figure prominently in the audience’s decision when asked about their media consumption.

In abundance

However, it is not just about redesigning, it is about rethinking. And that is what we have done in abundance at Gulf News in the past year, as we prepared to change the format
of the printed newspaper. This would not be merely a change to a smaller and more manageable format, it would be an ideal opportunity to take stock of our strengths and weaknesses, about the role we wish to play in the readers’ lives (we know how busy you are), about improving the quality of every aspect of our coverage and editing — from
the way headlines are written, stories composed, photos selected, and how content is adequately prepare to suit each of the various platforms.

Selecting the Berliner format was preceded by extensive discussions. We already knew that many research studies of the past 12 years have indicated that “small” is better when it comes to newspaper formats.

Such iconic and highquality newspapers globally such as France’s Le Monde or The Guardian in the UK have already adopted a Berliner format, much to the liking of their readers.

However, Gulf News becomes the first newspaper in the Middle East to go Berliner, and the first in the world to do it while sporting its front page in glossy quality paper.

Why make the move to a Berliner format?

The Berliner allows many of the fine features of the broadsheet, especially indexing and taking apart of sections, but also allows the reader to hold two pages together in their hands, reading without having to fold the pages. Advertisers like the exposure that their messages carry.

In a perfect world many of the newspapers that are currently broadsheets would aspire to becoming Berliners, if they could afford the necessary changes required in press modifications to print such a format. In the United States for example, dozens of newspapers, including The Wall Street Journal and USA TODAY have already gone to the Berliner’s width, although not yet to the length, but accommodating easier to read pages.

What is referred to as the “40 inch” format refers to this phenomenon where width is narrow but the page remains long. Eventually, most of this newspaper will developed into full-fledged Berliners.

By the way, although the name Berliner does have its origins with the German capital of Berlin, ironically, there are NO Berliner format dailies in Berlin.

We are hoping that you like the new Gulf News, both its size and all the other changes that start today and will appear in the next few days. Soon you will be wondering why this change did not take place earlier, or why not all newspapers offer the more manageable format.

As a designer/consultant, I often wonder the same thing, knowing that in a perfect world all newspapers would be Berliners. Today Gulf News moved a step closer in making your world a little more perfect.

Dr. Mario Garcia is CEO/Founder of Garcia Media, a global consulting firm.