Augmented Journalism

In preparation for the World Cup final between the Netherlands and Spain all Dutch newspapers are preparing “Orange attachments”. From one or two extra pages, an orange-colored front page to complete extra magazines, every single newsroom is spending long hours in the preparation for their publications before and after next sunday’s World Cup final.

Popular newspaper De Telegraaf will publish an extra magazine on saturday. On top of that, the paper will print extra issues in countries like Spain, Italy and France. Editor-in-Chief Sjuul Paradijs says that “the need for information is spectacular. We have to help the Dutch people who are on a vacation outside the Netherlands”, he told press agency ANP.

Free newspaper Metro, which normally doesn’t appear in the weekends, will publish an extra edition on saturday, which will be distributed in public transport. Competitor Sp!ts intends to come with “a spectacular deal” on monday. Editor-in-chief Willem Schouten – who just returned from South Africa where he watched the semifinals – says that the emphasis will be on “all the joy and sadness around the ‘national experience’ of football.”

One big exception is found at the newsroom of the religiously based Reformatorisch Dagblad. This small national paper won’t publish a single word on the Soccer World Cup, or on any professional sport activity.  RD-readers won’t even find the final results in their newspaper. Antoon Stam, secretary of the editorial board, argues that right at the creation of the newspaper the founders have decided to ignore sports, as many games are played on Sundays, a “body cult” is created around it and excessive amounts of money are being paid in transfers of the participating players. ”So we have no sport at all,” Stam told a Volkskrant-reporter.