The Times New Roman font has been retired from official communications at the State Department, but some observers say that this was just a cheap publicity stunt aimed at distracting from larger issues. Many say that the Calibri font, which was publicly retired in 2021, is a much better choice for future official documents.
It seems that font controversy is back in the news. This time, a new font called TNR has caught people’s attention. People are either loving it or hate it, but nobody is really sure why. Some say that the letters are simple and elegant, while others claim that they look like Dummies fonts from the 1990s. Regardless of people’s opinions, one thing is for sure – TNR will be remembered for its unique design.
The change to the State Department’s typography has been met with mixed reactions. Some say that a sans serif font, like Verdana, is more accessible andreadable on digital devices, while others believe that classic typefaces like Helvetica or Gill Sans are more aesthetically pleasing. Far be it from us to judge a style argument!
Fonts are an important part of the design process, and they can be useful in making documents more readable. However, when building a font from scratch, accessibility needs to be taken into account from the beginning.
Times change, but the need for readable fonts doesn’t. As the default font on all State Department documents, Calibri is a welcome update to the classic Times New Roman.
Times New Roman is a popular typeface for body text. It has a clean and modern appearance and can be used for any type of document. Calibri, on the
Given that Calibri is now slowly transitioning out of use, it’s interesting to consider what might have been had Microsoft not chosen it as the default font for Office in 2007. This choice essentially cemented its distaste in the eyes of many and likely prevented it from becoming more widespread. It’s an unfortunate legacy for a once-promising font.
The government often relies on long-proven products in its decision-making, but that doesn’t mean it won’t eventually switch to a more user-friendly font. After all, Roboto is the most commonly used typeface on the web, and it’s only been around since 2007. Source Sans takes the second spot with over 3 billion Google pageviews and Bierstadt is third with 1.5 billion pageviews.
The State Department has always been a stalwart advocate against using anything but Microsoft fonts on its official documents. But when it comes to printing text in multiple languages, they have found their perfect match with the free sans-serif font Noto.
The Bush Administration’s reign was characterized by a lack of transparency and poor design. Their website, for example, looked dated and unprofessional. The Obama Administration, on the other hand, has been known for its strong emphasis on design and accessibility. This may be due in part to the fact that they hired Silicon Valley talent to help run their website.