The war in Georgia requires a locator map. Many Americans probably need help finding Macon and Valdosta on a map, not to mention places in this Georgia.

This map from The Associated Press gets us halfway there. Let's add:

A compass pointer. Sure, up is (usually) north, but for this distant location, it doesn't hurt to make that clear.

A scale. How many miles from Gori to Buron? How big of a piece of land are we looking at?

An inset. Where on the globe is this?

This is where a copy editor can work with our friends in graphics to increase the usefulness of a map. And the wire desk can help too by using a Q&A like this one and textboxes to explain what it all means.