Visual Compositions and Layout Designs of the Front Pages of Nigerian Newspapers: A Study of Vanguard, Punch, Daily Sun and Leadership

Abstract

Nigerian newspapers have adopted several visual design elements in their bid to appeal to consumers. These elements aid the navigation of the news pages and, in turn, enhance their readability. This study sought to find out the current patterns of the visual designs of four selected national daily newspapers in Nigeria: Vanguard, Punch, Sun, and Leadership, between September 2014 and August 2015. The study was anchored on the Gestalt theory of visual perception, while visual analysis was adopted as a research methodology. The data generated was analysed using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) Version 20.0 with the aid of frequency, percentage score, average, and the ratio of the information obtained from the newspapers sampled. Findings revealed that, though the four newspapers had specific formats, they obeyed fundamental newspaper design principles.