Over the weekend I picked up a copy of the 10 Oct issue of Bloomberg Businessweek, which is dedicated through and through to the memory of Steve Jobs. The issue is a tour de force of editorial design, filled with emotionally and visually stunning layout after layout. What’s even more remarkable is that the publisher had the good taste to forgo all advertising throughout the issue.
Sample Spreads
The front cover is wonderfully succinct and unexpectedly powerful. The black and white silhouette of Jobs is set against a background of silver-colored metallic ink. The back of the magazine, too, is incredibly effective: a diminutive shot of the original Macintosh tucked into the lower right-hand corner, with “Good bye” on the screen.
The magazine opens up with a series of large, full-bleed images, overlaid with quotes from Jobs himself. These made me tear up.
There are essays later in the issue, as well as this extensive timeline of Jobs’ life.
News of Jobs’ passing first broke on Wednesday night. This issue was on newsstands by Sunday, at least, or maybe even Saturday night. Which means the Bloomberg Businessweek team must have been working like mad to make this happen, probably with very little sleep and almost assuredly under the duress of simultaneously mourning a man that many of them probably felt very strongly about. That effort is an incredibly fitting, touching and commendable tribute to Steve Jobs himself. Congratulations to the team.
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