We’re obviously not there yet when it comes to perfecting the online news site. And there’s probably a different answer for every community and every audience. But from reading and seeing the online presentations of multiple sites for the past few years, I can safely say a lot of newspapers are making strides in certain areas.
Some are doing really well with managing a comments area, while others are just doing well with organizing their home pages. Others are trying new things and experimenting with layout (which is great to see!). Here are some of my favorite developments, although this is by no means comprehensive:
1. A “hanging” interactive menu with each story
When I go to a news website, I don’t want to scroll too much to find & do what I want. I also don’t want to look everywhere to find functions/features/etc. So if I’m a news site, I want to try and make the reader’s experience as convenient as possible.
(This is going to come up at least a couple more times in this blog post.)
Some sites are experimenting with a menu that hangs on the screen as you scroll through a story. Most people recognize it on Mashable. But some newspaper sites are doing it, too — The Daily Chronicle in Illinois has one that hangs on the bottom of the screen, complete with options to view/add comments, share the story and even hide the bar if you find it annoying. No matter where you’re at on that page, that menu will be there.
Not only is it convenient for readers, but it also cleans the page from extra clutter (normally, the share/print/comment options are found under the headline, the byline or the story). Simple is better!
2. Heavy social media interaction
Key word here is “interaction.” I’ve mentioned this at least once before: Newspapers need to stop treating their Twitter accounts like RSS feeds. If people want all headlines, they’ll subscribe to your feed or go to your website. Twitter is a networking tool — use it to connect with your audience!
One great example of a site bucking the headline trend: The Atlanta Journal-Constitution routinely interacts with followers by answering their questions, retweeting and providing breaking updates from even sports. Furthermore, the AJC offers plenty of other accounts to follow on its website.
Another good example of a news site using Twitter to its advantage: The Florida Times-Union (JaxDotCom). It’s fine to mix in headlines and breaking updates on Twitter, but it’s also important to listen to your followers and talk with them. It’s really the 2010 way of answering your phone at work.
Facebook: This is another social media site many newspapers are struggling to maximize. But I like what The Arizona Republic (azcentral.com) is doing with its Facebook page. There are plenty of headlines and topics to go around, but also contests and promotions that provide for a huge boost in fans. Readers eat those up!
3. A rewards system in reader comments
This is one of my favorite developments. Very few news sites are doing this but, when executed right, a rewards system on a site’s comments section is an excellent way to liven up the conversation, keep people talking (and in a generally civil way, too) and, most importantly, keep your site from becoming a “comment ghetto.”
The Huffington Post has a prime example of a well developed comments area. Readers can earn badges for frequently commenting on stories and engaging with others (see right). Badges also can be upgraded via levels. This is very similar to how Foursquare rewards its users when they check in frequently. It’s all about giving little incentives!
What I really love, though, is the moderator badge. Don’t have the manpower in your news organization to monitor comments? Outsource that duty to your readers. The Huffington Post explains in their FAQ:
If you’ve flagged at least 20 comments that we ended up deleting and have a high ratio of good flags to mistaken flags, we’ll award you with a Level 1 Moderator Badge and enhance your flags so that they have five times more influence. If you’ve flagged at least 100 comments that we deleted and have a very high ratio of good flags to mistaken flags, we make you a Level 2 Moderator, upgrade your Badge, and trust you to delete inappropriate comments on the site. We will continue to trust you to delete inappropriate comments from the site as long as you handle the task responsibly. If you’re like many users, you’ll want to step up your flagging game and become one of our most trusted users.
This all falls under the idea that a well developed community can monitor itself. And it can. You just have to pull the right strings.
(Note: Yes, I still hold to my opinion that anonymity is not the answer to fixing news site comments. This is just one of the better solutions to fixing comment ghettos.)
4. Home page personalization
The future of news is personalized. It’s hyperlocal. And often, nowadays, when you log into a news site, you have to get around the stories you don’t care about to find the ones that do matter to you. As I mentioned earlier, it’s all about convenience — and personalizing your news experience is a part of that.
We have a long ways to go in this department. But there are still some sites making strides. My first experience with news personalization was with ESPN, when they implemented MyESPN to allow you to track your favorite teams, leagues, players and columnists along the right column (although that column is not there anymore). News sites have rarely ventured into personalization, but the Orange County Register allows you to organize your home page by ordering the categories on the right side of the page (see the image).While this is a primative example of true personalization, it’s a step in the right direction.
One more example of personalizing news, albeit it’s not on the home page (yet): The Grand Rapids Press offers its hyperlocal coverage, “Ada to Zeeland,” via an interactive map. (Disclosure: I am an intern for The Press)
5. Landing pages for extensive content
I’ve been over this one, too (see #3 in the link). When hot topics come up in the community, it’s extremely convenient to have a one-stop shop for all the coverage, whether it be news stories, multimedia or even reader interaction, where everything is neatly organized and summarized. That was one thing we did well at Central Michigan Life while I was editor — two of our landing pages included the tailgating controversy at CMU and also the budget situation.
I have always been a big fan of the Spokesman-Review website. Not only is it one of the cleanest sites out there, but it is so unique in how content is organized. You can easily search by time, place, and topic, and you can also see the hot topics through the “Quick Links” navigation bar. Take a look at how some of these landing pages are designed (for example, Mount St. Helens). They should never look like a list of tagged stories.
Another recent example of a hot topic page: The Washington Post and its Stephen Strasburg page. Although it’d be much nicer if the URL was simplified (i.e. washingtonpost.com/strasburg).
Other good reads from the week so far:
- Why link out? Four journalistic purposes of the noble hyperlink. A good summary of the value of the link, especially in journalism. As Jeff Jarvis says, “Do what you do best, and link to the rest.” (NOTE: Here’s another read fron Nieman Lab on the maximizing the value of the link.)
- Bloggers: 7 questions to ask before hitting publish. Sometimes, it’s easy to lose perspective when writing. Use these tips to keep you in line.
- The best journalism you’ll see today: “Prison Valley”. Actually from last week, but I loved it so much, I thought I’d link it again. Not only does this project involve stellar video and photo work, but it’s interactive: You can navigate your way through the story. Amazing work.
Posted by Brian Manzullo at June 8, 2010
Journalism, Uncategorized