**Abstract:** Newspaper layout follows a relatively fixed structure, which is similar in nature to the inverted pyramid structure used in news writing. Therefore, the author refers to it as the "layout inverted pyramid structure." This structure involves placing the most important, freshest, and most engaging facts in the lead of a news article, with the most captivating content often appearing at the very beginning of the lead. In the body of the news article, the content is arranged in order of decreasing importance, much like an inverted pyramid where the top is large and heavy while the bottom is small and light. The layout inverted pyramid structure is similar to this and is almost universally adopted by newspapers in practice.
Keywords: Newspaper layout, inverted pyramid structure, visual attention
**I. Manifestation of the Newspaper Layout Inverted Pyramid Structure**
The importance of different pages or positions within a newspaper varies. This difference in importance can be explained by the concept of page dominance, which refers to the characteristic of a page to attract readers' attention. When a reader engages with a newspaper, their level of attention to each page and its various sections differs, thus creating varying levels of dominance.
Newspaper editors always place the most important news in the most dominant positions on the page, while less important news is placed in less dominant positions. The dominance of a page correlates positively with the editor's judgment of the news's importance. In newspaper layouts, important news occupies prominent pages, while secondary news occupies less significant pages, forming an inverted pyramid structure. This structure is evident at every hierarchical level of the newspaper:
Firstly, in the entire newspaper, the front page is the most important section, featuring the most critical news.
Although modern newspapers are generally divided into several sections, the arrangement of these sections still follows the inverted pyramid structure, with more important sections appearing earlier and less important ones later. This sequence reflects their respective importance. Therefore, the overall layout structure of a newspaper is an inverted pyramid.
Secondly, within a single section, the layout structure also reflects the inverted pyramid structure, similar to the layout of the entire newspaper.
Thirdly, within a single page, different positions reflect varying levels of importance.
Lastly, the inverted pyramid structure also exists within a single column. The most important article in a column is usually placed in the most dominant position, often at the beginning of the column. Other articles are arranged in order of their importance.
**II. Analysis of the Reasons for the Newspaper Layout Inverted Pyramid Structure**
1. **The Necessity of the Layout Inverted Pyramid Structure**
Readers are the primary audience of newspapers. The layout should be based on the reading psychology and habits of readers. The difference in page dominance originates from the selective attention of readers' vision. The aesthete Rudolf Arnheim pointed out, "Vision is entirely different from photography; it is not a passive reception process like photography but an active exploration. Vision is highly selective, choosing not only things that attract it but also everything it sees."
Based on this perspective, visual attention can be divided into three models: (1) Spotlight model, (2) Zoom-lens model, and (3) Spatial-gradient model.
Regardless of the specific model, all of them prove that readers have a visual center. Things at the focal point of visual attention are more likely to draw people's attention. This visual characteristic of people is the prerequisite for the existence of the inverted pyramid structure in layout design.
2. **The Need for the Layout Inverted Pyramid Structure**
The necessity of the layout inverted pyramid structure can be analyzed from the perspectives of both the audience and the communicator. From the audience's perspective, this structure facilitates reading. Pages with high dominance are usually located in areas where attention resources are relatively concentrated, allowing people to read important information first.
At the same time, this structure creates a fixed expectation horizon for readers, reducing the time spent on selective reading and making their reading behavior easier.
From the communicator's perspective, this structure helps increase the audience's selection rate, simplifies editorial work, and forms a space for meaning expression. Schramm's theory of communication choice probability suggests that the probability of choice = reward guarantee / effort degree. This is particularly important for market-oriented newspapers, as it relates to the newspaper's reading rate and sometimes even determines its economic situation.
The layout inverted pyramid structure simplifies editorial work. While forming a reading expectation among readers, it also provides a framework for editors. Faced with a large amount of information, editors will not feel overwhelmed, simplifying their work and shortening the time required for newspaper layout.
The layout inverted pyramid structure can form a space for the newspaper's expression of meaning. Media has the function of constructing a pseudo-environment. Different newspapers have different headlines, reflecting their stance and attitude towards events. In reporting on a battle, information about the victorious side is often prominently featured, while information about the defeated side may be relegated to an inconspicuous corner to minimize negative effects.
The concept of primacy effect in narratology helps understand this. Primacy effect refers to the idea that "even if the information obtained at the beginning conflicts with what comes later, we still tend to consider it valid information." This means that even when readers later encounter information that contradicts what they initially saw, they still tend to agree with what they saw earlier. This highlights the importance of page dominance and shows how the way editors arrange news affects how readers understand the world.
For both the audience and communicators, the layout inverted pyramid structure plays a significant role, providing the necessary conditions for its existence.
**References:**
- Greimas, A. J. (1966). *Structural Semantics*
- Arnheim, R. (1954). *Art and Visual Perception*
- Schramm, W. (1956). *Four Theories of the Press*