Here are the websites my group discussed in class last week.
The Good
Newsmap: We love this site. It takes a few seconds to load, but it's great. It shows the top headlines all over the world and color codes them by subject matter. Clicking on a headline also opens up the original article.
Center for Public Integrity: The best quality about this site is its lead stories are always obvious, and they normally come with a great graphic that catches your attention. The "top story" slide show also gives readers a chance to see the most important information without having to scroll down the page.
Don't Touch My Moleskin: This site is really unique. Mostly, we like photos, which have a certain artistic quality to them. The site may not be in English, but it keeps your attention.
The Bad
The Telegraph: The site is incredibly slow. Clicking on a tab or conducting a search can make minutes seem like hours. The layout doesn't really bother me, but there are too many competing graphics and photos.
DC.gov: The home page looks pretty good, but all it takes is one click to see how much work the inside pages need. They really fail on substance and design.
The Food Network:We love our food sites, but this one needs some help. The lists on the site aren't inclusive and finding recipes is a challenge.
Saturday, May 30, 2009
Political Sites
One of my favorite political sites is Politico. The page has such a simple layout, and you always know the dominant story based on the lead photo. I also like their use of the simple, three-column design, which gives them just enough space to post videos and medium-size photos. The commentaries are well organized, and the headlines draw people in.
Another political site I like is the Huffington Post. My favorite part of the site is that their lead story normally takes up the top half of the page, and they usually use a string of photos that really draw the reader in. Last week, one of the stories was on how the people shown in one of President Obama’s campaign ads are now struggling financially. The story really offered a look at how the economy was affecting people, and the irony of the piece was not lost. I might not have even read the story if it had not been spread across the top of the page with photos of the people involved. Designers really did a great job of showcasing the piece. I’m also excited to see what their new investigative journalism group uncovers and how the stories are presented on the site.
My third favorite political site is the Onion. While the site is obviously sarcastic, there are definitely political undertones. In addition to the fact that the articles are just plain hilarious, the site itself is pretty user friendly. It’s organized much like a regular news site, with sections titled, “Local,” “Science and Technology,” “Politics” and “Entertainment.” Some might be offended by the content, but if you like sarcasm with your politics and enjoy shows like the Colbert Report and the Daily Show, this is a great place to go.
Now for the worst of the worst. I don’t like the Drudge Report’s design at all. I know we discussed the site in class last week, but I have to rehash this one. The font type is horrible, it’s too small, and it’s completely random. The top half of the page has an incredibly poor design, with random white space and text. It looks like the first web page ever designed on the Internet. Content-wise, I get what they’re going for, but I think they really need to update the site’s design.
The website for my hometown newspaper also leaves much to be desired. The local paper in Youngstown, Ohio, the Vindicator, has been pretty innovative with its newspaper design, but the website just can’t compete. The paper is definitely a “Sunday paper,” and I doubt their sales from deliveries have dropped all that much. But they could definitely work on bringing their website into the 21st Century. The inside pages are very text heavy with few graphics, and the home page has chunks of white space and just doesn’t seem to gel together all that well. For an area with a history of corruption in politics, the “politics” portion of the site should be easily visible, but it’s hidden in the tabs at the top.
Finally, I found a great website dedicated to the worst political sites, most of them for people running for local, state, and national governments: http://news.cnet.com/2300-1028_3-6129164-1.html. They are definitely worth checking out. In most cases, not having a website would have probably been a better decision. Some of the sites reference non-existent blogs for congressional reps, and others show repeated areas stating, “Under Construction” or blatant grammatical inaccuracies and typos. One of my favorites is a page on Representative Kay Granger’s website. There used to be a recipe for “Easy, Killer Margaritas” with question marks next to how much alcohol should be added and a statement that the pitcher could be any size. Priceless.
Another political site I like is the Huffington Post. My favorite part of the site is that their lead story normally takes up the top half of the page, and they usually use a string of photos that really draw the reader in. Last week, one of the stories was on how the people shown in one of President Obama’s campaign ads are now struggling financially. The story really offered a look at how the economy was affecting people, and the irony of the piece was not lost. I might not have even read the story if it had not been spread across the top of the page with photos of the people involved. Designers really did a great job of showcasing the piece. I’m also excited to see what their new investigative journalism group uncovers and how the stories are presented on the site.
My third favorite political site is the Onion. While the site is obviously sarcastic, there are definitely political undertones. In addition to the fact that the articles are just plain hilarious, the site itself is pretty user friendly. It’s organized much like a regular news site, with sections titled, “Local,” “Science and Technology,” “Politics” and “Entertainment.” Some might be offended by the content, but if you like sarcasm with your politics and enjoy shows like the Colbert Report and the Daily Show, this is a great place to go.
Now for the worst of the worst. I don’t like the Drudge Report’s design at all. I know we discussed the site in class last week, but I have to rehash this one. The font type is horrible, it’s too small, and it’s completely random. The top half of the page has an incredibly poor design, with random white space and text. It looks like the first web page ever designed on the Internet. Content-wise, I get what they’re going for, but I think they really need to update the site’s design.
The website for my hometown newspaper also leaves much to be desired. The local paper in Youngstown, Ohio, the Vindicator, has been pretty innovative with its newspaper design, but the website just can’t compete. The paper is definitely a “Sunday paper,” and I doubt their sales from deliveries have dropped all that much. But they could definitely work on bringing their website into the 21st Century. The inside pages are very text heavy with few graphics, and the home page has chunks of white space and just doesn’t seem to gel together all that well. For an area with a history of corruption in politics, the “politics” portion of the site should be easily visible, but it’s hidden in the tabs at the top.
Finally, I found a great website dedicated to the worst political sites, most of them for people running for local, state, and national governments: http://news.cnet.com/2300-1028_3-6129164-1.html. They are definitely worth checking out. In most cases, not having a website would have probably been a better decision. Some of the sites reference non-existent blogs for congressional reps, and others show repeated areas stating, “Under Construction” or blatant grammatical inaccuracies and typos. One of my favorites is a page on Representative Kay Granger’s website. There used to be a recipe for “Easy, Killer Margaritas” with question marks next to how much alcohol should be added and a statement that the pitcher could be any size. Priceless.
Monday, May 25, 2009
New Sites
I have to admit, for the most part, I stick to sites like Yahoo news and the Washington Post. I rarely go outside of my comfort zone when it comes to search engines and sites to get information. So this will be quite a journey for me! Here are some great sites I've started following from my other class called "Web Soup": http://www.buzzmachine.com/ and http://mashable.com/. Mashable focuses on social media news, and buzzmachine is a blog by Jeff Jarvis, author of What Would Google Do? I have also been following Romenesko on Poynter to get news about the media: http://www.poynter.org/column.asp?id=45
Friday, May 22, 2009
More Death?
Yesterday, the Columbia Journalism Review profiled Krishna Andavolu, managing editor of http://www.obit-mag.com/, a website entirely dedicated to talking about death -- whether it's highlighting the lives of those who have already passed on, looking at how the terminally ill face death, or even discussing whether it's OK to flirt at a funeral. Andavolu's website states, "Death gives life its immediacy. Because we know it will end, we savor and value life all the more. Obit examines life through the lens of death. Whether it’s the loss of a person, a place, an object or an idea, life’s constant change presents an opportunity for examination, discussion and even celebration." The CJR article talks about how Andavalu thinks death is becoming more prominent in the mainstream media, such as with the Swine Flu and the Air Force One scare.
I, like many, have always been fascinated with death. Whether it's watching CSI and Law and Order, reading true crime novels, or simply flipping first to the obit page of the Sunday paper, death is a subject that has always held my interest. Maybe the Obit site is right. We know our lives will end. It's something we all have in common. But does the media go too far with this? Do news sites exploit those who have died in the interest of getting more hits? And have we become saturated with death?
I, like many, have always been fascinated with death. Whether it's watching CSI and Law and Order, reading true crime novels, or simply flipping first to the obit page of the Sunday paper, death is a subject that has always held my interest. Maybe the Obit site is right. We know our lives will end. It's something we all have in common. But does the media go too far with this? Do news sites exploit those who have died in the interest of getting more hits? And have we become saturated with death?
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