The Asterisk Update #2 – Pink, pauses, and progress

A quick note on publishing plans, site design, and category changes.

Hi everyone,

Just wanted to share a quick update on production.

Last week, I hit a ceiling. I tried to get the news roundup out on time but couldn’t finish it, even after cutting back on sleep. The roundup did well in its first month, and it’ll continue to evolve as I work toward a format that feels right.

Longer features on hold

With longer projects taking up most of my free time in the background, I’ll be publishing shorter pieces in the newsletter for now. The news roundup will go live every two weeks.

I enjoy working on in-depth features, that’s always been the intention. But they take time: research, writing, post-production, and often interviews with experts from around the world to offer deeper insights into the business of sport and the stories behind it. That said, these background projects will make it harder to conduct interviews in the coming weeks as I focus on other commitments.

Homage to Manchester

In mid-April, the website switched to a baby pink background, moving away from the standard white.

I remember when Manchester United launched their baby pink away kit in 2018, inspired by the Manchester Evening News’ now-defunct sports paper, The Football Pink. I really loved that shirt, and the fact that it had a news connection.

While playing around with the design settings, I thought of going back to black (the site’s original background), but it made data visualisations harder to read. The baby pink felt like a good compromise, my own Financial Times lite, which famously uses salmon pink.

Tweaks in the last month

Previously, The Asterisk used special character-themed names for categories: The Underscore (Football Finance), The Divide (Politics), and so on. That’s now been replaced with clearer, more accessible sections like Business of Sport, Culture, and Environment.

Hopefully this makes the site easier to navigate and removes unnecessary confusion. No need to overcomplicate things.

Warren M.