Bonita Burton

Bonita Burton owes her design career to an editor who slashed a five-part series she had slaved over to three parts. The then-reporter was so disheartened that she transferred to the design department of The Union Democrat in Sonora, Calif., and found her true calling.

“I thought I would miss telling stories, but now I interview reporters about what we need to communicate visually,” says Burton, 37, who oversees photo, design, copy editing and wire operations as deputy managing editor for the Orlando Sentinel. “I’ve been well served by the ability to speak both languages—that of a reporter and the visual language.”

In June, Burton delivered a striking redesign of the Sentinel, building a multimedia Web site to solicit companywide input and completing the job in three months. Seven other Tribune Co. papers completed concurrent, independent redesigns, each tailored to the local market, and Burton played a lead role in sharing best practices among the various new looks.

Later in the summer, she jump-started a languishing effort to create a page-sharing process for Tribune papers. “I got tired of sitting in meetings talking about the obstacles,” Burton says. She collaborated with colleagues at other Tribune newspapers to produce a page of world and national news designed and edited in Orlando and shared with two other Tribune papers, The Morning Call in Allentown, Pa., and the Daily Press in Newport News, Va. The Orlando Sentinel and the Daily Press also shared coverage on election night.

“She’s talented, passionate and has a lot of guts,” says Publisher Howard Greenberg. “She’s just what you need in today’s environment.”

Burton was elected this year to be treasurer/secretary of the Society for News Design, an organization representing visual journalists, which she credits with launching her design career.

Connections: Orlando Sentinel, 633 N. Orange Ave., Orlando, Fla. 32801, (407) 650-6374, bburton@orlandosentinel.com

By Chad Konecky