Old versus new

The difference between the news side of the L.A. Times and the newly and earnestly irreverent opinion side was on display in the handling of this photo from the Gerald Ford funeral. It anchored Wednesday's front page with a straight caption naming the ex-presidents and their families. On the paper's Opinion L.A. blog, written by the editorial page staff, the same pic is labeled "Rogue's Gallery at the National Cathedral." Readers are invited to offer up their own snarky captions. Editor Tim Cavanaugh, a recent hire from the libertarian fold at Reason magazine, primed the pump by proposing "I see Flattop, Pruneface, and Larceny Lu. Where's Mumbles?" Hard to know whether this approach will connect with readers of LATimes.com, but there hasn't been much response to the caption contest: just two comments from readers all day yesterday. New comments don't get posted overnight, though, so maybe more will come in when the editors who moderate the site get to work this morning.