Cluttered newspaper websites drive me crazy. Take this morning: I wanted to read about the Democratic debates because I didn’t get a chance to watch last night. I wanted to know what they discussed, whether they were more cordial this time around, what it was like without Edwards. I went to CNN because I hadn’t checked out their election coverage since the ’06 midterms. But before I could get there I was distracted by a story on the front page about the importance of the youth vote. While somewhat related, it was about Obama’s appeal to youth. I really enjoyed the article but the point is that I never got to reading about the debate. I wanted to get to the issues.
The article accomplished its goal, but the website did not. Layout of websites need to be conducive to readers like me – ones who are easily distracted and have a hard time passing up an in depth article when it randomly jumps into view.
Just for clarity, this happens to me all the time. I get onto a news website wanting to read one thing, actually reading something completely unrelated and forgetting to read what I wanted to read in the first place. I think if the youth voting article was on the same page as the debate coverage, I would have read both. This is where I think the web shells concept can really come in handy because it puts them together and reminds me what I wanted to read in the first place. There are certain news stories and topics I have continued interest in and if I found reliable, well organized web shells on these topics, it just might convert me to internet news fan. Might.
Progress: My first article of the semester was published today as the Second Front centerpiece. I think the writing and reporting was solid. Next on my plate is a story about a rouge water company that’s being sued by the Public Service Commission on behalf of Blue Acres trailor park residents.
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