By John Norton

Reader feedback, announcement of improvements

I'm happy to report that the number of readers contacting me each week -- both those offering critiques and offering compliments -- has been growing steadily.

A special thanks to the many dozens of you who wrote or e-mailed about the glaring error in a side article in our Sept. 13 Catholic guide to preparing for death. (You're absolutely right: Deacons are not permitted to celebrate the Sacrament of the Anointing of the Sick.) We apologize for the confusion.

As editors everywhere know, the letters and e-mails they receive statistically are much more likely to offer criticism than praise. Anger tends to be a motivator to write; pleased satisfaction, not so much.

That's OK with me. We take our responsibility to you very seriously and view improvement as a process that will never be completed, at least in this life. Your feedback plays an important role in our pursuit of Catholic and journalistic excellence.

Considering that, I've been surprised and delighted in recent months by thejump in the number of letters and e-mails that offer praise and encouragement.

If you like what we're doing, we're happy to learn about it, especially if you're able to specify what it is you like. (And we hope that you spread the word about us to potential new reader/subscribers.)

Last but not least, we are grateful when readers send in ideas for stories. You may know someone who would make an interesting or inspiring subject of a profile story, or a Church news story that deserves national attention. Please pass the ideas along to us.

I can be reached at feedback@osv.com.

* * *

In just a few weeks, we'll be unveiling a new and improved version of Our Sunday Visitor.

The casual reader may not even notice a difference; the changes are not that dramatic.

First, we're taking half an inch off the height of the newspaper. In these times when we're all looking for ways to economize and to be better stewards of what we have, that slight change will save us many thousands of dollars a year in paper and postage costs.

Second, we're going to introduce a new font for headlines which is cleaner and easier to read.

Third, we've gone through each page of the newspaper to eliminate some design inconsistencies that have crept in the half dozen years or so since the paper's last face-lift.

The changes will coincide with our implementation of new production software that will improve our ability to work as a team, especially with our talent that is off-site.

I'll be telling you more about the changes in the next few weeks. And I'll be very interested to hear your feedback on the changes once they've rolled out.