The New Typography

bold sans is more suitable than semi-bold: the latter is not different enough
from the grey of the text.
In the fraktur pages of newspapers. Bernhard or similar fraktur types are
most commonly used for important lines. The only obj ection to this is the
basic one. It is completely incomprehensible, however. when the Frank­
furter Zeitung uses the antiquated and hardly more legible gothic for its
title masthead. It really is difficult to decipher these hieroglyphs! It is
astonishing to see this in a paper that has tried hard. often with success.
to present a really good typographic appearance.
I believe that it is not right for a newspaper set in type to have a drawn
masthead. Our typography has enough variety to meet all exceptional
requirements. That applies also to the newspaper's masthead. Its design.
particularly in the case of old papers. should not be changed, even to
roman. for it is the "trade mark" of the paper. Of course everything that is
not the actual title can be set in roman or sanserif. but the main title or
masthead, for example Berliner Tageblatt, should keep its original form
unchanged. It does not follow that new newspapers must set their mast­
heads in some kind of fraktur - sanserif alone is right. On a newspaper
stand it would hit the countless other mastheads in fraktur like a bomb!
It is time to give up the centred headings inherited from the 19th century
(before that. there were hardly any). and introduce ranged left headings,
which express the spirit of our time. as in this book. The white space fol­
lowing most ranged left headings has a good effect, and by its so to speak
automatic allusion to neighbouring headings gives a better organization of
the text. Today centred headings make a disturbing grey; the black type is
mixed up with the surrounding white. instead of strengthening the page by
pure separation.
Oas Te chnische Blatt, a supplement of the Frankfurter Zeitung, has ranged
left headings and has become a very handsome newspaper.
Vertical rules between columns should be abandoned; they are as unnec­
essary as they are ugly. A newspaper page looks really lighter without
them. In place of the still much-used thick/thin rules beneath the title and
above news and advertisements, simple bold rules (about four- or six­
point) should be used. Thick/thin rules are obtrusive and a superfluous
unbeautiful ornament.
Halftone blocks in newspapers look much better without the usually
inevitable surrounding rule. Also pictures in gravure papers should be cut
flush. All rules and especially borders should be discarded.
The design of advertising pages is dealt with in the section on advertising.
It would be a great advantage for newspaper formats and type areas to be