Turns out the Los Angeles Times wasn’t the first paper to produce scratch and sniff ads for an advertiser (see Dateline, Sept. 10, 2007 and Newspapers & Technology, October 2007).

Instead, the Orlando (Fla.) Sentinel quietly came under the wire to be the first Tribune Publishing paper to run the scented ink, according to Kelly Benson, vice president of operations.

The Sentinel, she said, started its press run producing its scented ad three hours before the Times began its run. The Sentinel’s ad ran Friday, Sept. 7 while the Times’ ad ran Sunday, Sept. 9.

Benson told Newspapers & Technology that agreements with the advertiser, a local theatrical group, precluded the Sentinel from announcing its pioneering press run. Ironically, both the Sentinel and Times ads featured frosted cake scents.

Flint Group provided the scented ink the newspapers used.