Story posted on May 9, 2008

The Dayton (Ohio) Daily News sent three writers, an editor/writer, a photographer and a videographer to New Orleans for the BCS championship game. This event served as a high-profile experiment as the DDN continues to put a greater emphasis on multimedia.

The results

■ Standard walk-up content: Supplied readers with the expected features, columns and spot news. Included was a feature on future first-round draft pick Vernon Gholston and his roommate – a female massage therapist. Gholston invited The DDN into his apartment and the story and photos gave readers a unique, behind-the-scenes look at the life of a college football star. The photo of Gholston getting a massage was a "web winner."

■ Blogs: The "Buckeyes Beat" blogs section included multiple entries from Jan. 2-8.

Blogs included a wide array of topics, from Buck-I-Guy's arrival to the LSU chancellor eating on Canal Street to in-game commentary. The DDN's audience was not shy about joining in. In the aftermath of another OSU blowout loss, one reader summed it up with this comment: "Which is worse: Cooper vs. Michigan or Tressel vs. SEC?" After the print deadline, The DDN's columnist filed a blog detailing how OSU players were in panic mode at halftime. It was the main online story the day after the game and drew nearly 100 comments.

■ Videos/slides: The DDN also produced more than a dozen videos/slide shows from New Orleans, including a quick tour of Ohio State's locker room and the view from the top row in the Superdome. Also gave a camera to an OSU player on media day and put him to work interviewing teammates. The Player Cam, featuring defensive tackle Todd Denlinger, was a big hit.

■ Game coverage: Tuesday's print editions featured a "poster" look for A1 and a four-page wrap around Sports. In about 50 minutes, the staff produced three columns, a mainbar, game notes, an expanded stats rail, a By the Numbers package and – in place of a traditional cover story – four game nuggets that complimented a huge headline and photo. The back page of the wrap featured a rail of "pregame sights and sounds" and a photo package, including one of a Dayton family doing the O-H-I-O cheer outside the Superdome.

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