Guardian wins 'best in world' design award

Congratulations to The Guardian which has been named as one of the best designed newspapers in the year in the Society of Newspaper Design awards. According to the judges the best five designed newspaper in the world in 2013 were:

The Guardian, UK
Dagens Nyheter, Sweden
Die Zeit, Germany
The Grid, Canada
Welt am Sonntag, Germany

It's a rare accolade for British newspapers. The last time a UK paper won the top award was in 2007. It was The Guardian that triumphed then too.
All of the other four winners were included in last year's top five. The Guardian is the only newcomer, muscling out Denmark's Politiken. The judges say that is because 'the best have a way of rising to the top regardless of who is doing the tasting'. The Independent, Independent on Sunday and the FT made it into the last 29. The judges in the 35th annual The Best of News Design competition, which was held at Syracuse University in New York, were looking for:

• A timeless design

• A strong voice

• A bold approach

• An apparent hierarchy

• A design that serves the readers

• Visuals that excite

• Good ideas

• Consistency

• Courage

Take a look at a neat slideshow of the winners here.

Some of the most spectacular work, though, was in other sections. Here are a few designs that caught my eye. 

Excelsior of Mexico

Adolfo Arranz of the South China Morning Post (silver medal)

Infographics of Berlin, Germany (silver medal)

Khaleej Times, Dubai (award of excellence)

Gulf News, Dubai (silver medal)

The Grid, Canada (silver medal)

The New York Times (award of excellence)