New CNN Website Opinions
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- homeostatic0
MY analysis...
This redesign represents a big step backwards from the usability-tested site of 2006 by Razorfish!
For readers who actually read the TEXT ARTICLES on CNN.com the 2009 redesign is an abysmal failure. A miniscule left rail with small text links is just not enough for this to be a good "at a glance" news site.
Additionally, the handling of the text article pages themselves is atrocious. Are they serious about those awkward text wraps, media viewers that take entire "above the fold" (no scroll) area, and 100 word articles that require 3000+ pixels of vertical scrolling???
In short, could we make the text articles any harder to find or read?
It's understandable that with online video viewership up an astounding 40% from last year, than CNN would want to make their web content more video-centric. Still, this is NOT the way to do it. If anything, I could see a better video viewer with less page loads and annoying pre-roll ads but this clearly not what we've been given...
I think HUGE inc. in Brooklyn should know better than to commit the huge number of basic usability design mistakes they have here. But the primary ones have to do with what we designers call "legibility".
Legibility in design usually pertains to differentiation of elements—i.e. variation of size and consistent color coding which establishes a hierarchy of information. It's the same considerations that go into designing a glass cockpit or any GUI.
The idea is not to look sexy but to gear things towards human cognition. Anybody can just pack in a bunch of information or thumbnails. That's what a classifieds section in an old newspaper did. It takes a truly good design to weight certain content more than others, letting the eye flow easily from one element of information to the next.
Looking at this CNN redesign, I get many similar-sized boxes and a mass of thumbs in an amazingly static configuration. After so much time and effort to study usability by the Razorfish design people a few years back, this is a real let down.
I like other work by HUGE but this is a mess. Sorry guys!
- poomoo0
I love how QBN is full of boys that know best.
- akrokdesign0
yeah, the old one was good.
- raf0
This...
http://bit.ly/3KlGer
...was the best news layout out there. It was perfect to the last pixel.I so regret not having taken detailed screenshots last week.
- Invalid0
it's interesting to see websites for news and media companies. the information architecture needs to evolve around the way people consume news and media in traditional methods. this can be achieved by developing a concept model based upon this particular behaviour. im not sure of anyone who does this well.
i think the CNN redesign is formulaic and presents nothing new in the way of information consumption. it may even be a step backward.
- Countryman0
Didn't method design the old site????
This new design triggers an uncontrollable apelike rage.
Probably something to do with the red....
- THA0
Awkward grid they're using.
- Yeah, that left column seems way too narrow.graphiknature
- utopian0
I like their old site better
- I agree.graphiknature
- you agree that he likes the old site better?version3
- pauli0
and the globe spins
- pauli0
Taking into perspective of their core audience, and what they are most likely attempting to achieve - I think its a great step in the right direction.
- Who is there core audience? i thought CNN was the bbc / guardian of the us? trust worthy and serious ?crayz
- it dose seem like there trying to push video more than anything.crayz
- Main audience must be the bloods.graphiknature
- version30
since FOXNews
- set0
I agree that red header is extremely distracting
- Seanbot0
Seems like a missed opportunity. Why are there drop shadows everywhere? Gross.
- graphiknature0
Looks like the header is the same color as www.seamlessweb.com
- silentseven0
Ya not really feeling the direction that Huge has been going in on their past few sites. http://www.ivillage.com/ ReDesign feels flat and unfinished sort of the same as the CNN redesign. Agree with ukit about the centered logo, feels weird.
- Yeah there isn't much cohesion going on with the ivillage.com site. I even found a margin error in FF on one area. :Pgraphiknature
- ukit0
Hmmm, you guys say just the front page but the whole site looks different to me.
I think the logo looks really awkward centered like that, and yea, red header is overkill. Not enough time to dig through the whole site, but overall the type and positioning seems sloppier than the last version.
So they butchered their really decent-looking redesign they launched a year or so ago. Reminds me of what I've seen more than a few stakeholders do to sites so not a huge surprise;)
- duckofrubber0
Looks like PMS 185 is the color for 2010?