How to Create a Newspaper in Microsoft Word by Filonia LeChat

Due in part to customers overwhelmingly obtaining news information from electronic media such as tablets, smart phones and the Internet, print journalism has receded to the point where the Newspaper Death Watch website offers a "rest in peace" section listing organizations that, like their pages, have folded. Bridge the gap between the printed page and electronic readability by making your own newspaper using Microsoft Word. Although Word doesn't offer a newspaper template, you can quickly manipulate the software into something tangible to print out or to distribute online.
1. Start Word. Click the "Page Layout" tab. Click the "Size" button below the tab. Click the "More Paper Sizes" option. Enter the dimensions for the newspaper into the "Width" and "Height" boxes, such as "11" and "17" respectively. Keep in mind that most standard printers can only print 8.5 inches by 11 inches. Click the "OK" button.
2. Click the "Columns" button on the ribbon. Click the "Three" button. You won't see anything change on the Word document since there isn't text yet, but you will see the columns break into three on the small ruler stretching across the top of the Word document.
3. Click the "Insert" tab. Click the "Header" button and select the "Alphabet" option or whichever is your preference. You want to choose one with a line running along the bottom to serve as your masthead distinction.
4. Click into the "Type Text" section of the header. Type the name of the newspaper. Press the "Enter" key and type the date of the issue, volume number and any other details you desire.
5. Highlight the newspaper name text. Click the "Home" tab. Increase the font with the "Font size" menu and change the font if desired. Click the "Align Center" button to align the header in the center of the page.
6. Click the "Insert" tab again. Click the "Picture" button. Browse to a digital logo for the newspaper and double-click it, then drag it into place on the left or right side of the masthead. Check the "Different First Page" box on the green "Header & Footer Tools" tab's ribbon so the masthead only appears on the first page of the newspaper. Click the red "X" button, "Close Header and Footer," to close the masthead and return to the Word document.
7. Type the first article on the page, starting with the title, author's byline, city and state information. As you type, Word performs word wrapping in the columns and moves text to a new column when you come to the end of one.
8. Add pictures to the newspaper to go with the articles following the same process as importing a logo, by clicking the "Insert" tab's "Picture" button and browsing to and double-clicking the picture.
9. Click the "File" tab. Click "Save As." Type a name for the newspaper, with a version number if desired, such as CityNews08-21-2011, and click the "Save" button

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