Take a look at the new CNN.com in beta
Cory Bergman June 1st, 2007
CNN.com is preparing to launch a new design, and here’s the beta site with a features tour. Among the new features: a bigger video player, improved weather section, local news section (powered by Topix), “All About” pages with in-depth resources, and recommended stories based on browsing history. (Thanks, Don!)
CNN.com is sticking to its major themes, with the main story on the left and a list of headlines in the center. It’s still unclear how the new Internet Broadcasting deal will fit in. What’s your reaction to the beta new design?
Update: They’ve added a link to a KCRA story in the “More stories” section beneath the fold on the home page. Also, when you click through to the U.S. news page, there’s a link to a WKMG story in the main story block (see below).
Both of these stations are IB affiliates, and both links are just that: straight links to the local sites’ stories (they pop new windows.) I would imagine a compelling local story could generate a big influx of unique visitors for the local site (although some argue that’s an artificial increase since nearly all of these visitors would be out-of-market.)
13 Comments Add your own
1. Swift Loris | June 1st, 2007 at 8:26 am
I usually find myself hating news site redesigns–they seem only to get messier, clunkier, more crowded, more gimmicky. This, in contrast, is clean, simple, easy to navigate, well organized–a vast improvement over CNN’s current site. Don’t give me creative aesthetic touches and fancy graphics; I want functionality, please. I don’t care if it’s “dull” as long as I can find what I want.
2. thedetroitchannel | June 1st, 2007 at 8:32 am
if the local section is powered by topix (which when i entered a nearby zip code it showed as) the ib deal is nowhere near exclusive.
good for the user.
not so for the local affil.
correct me if i’m wrong.
3. Safran | June 1st, 2007 at 8:54 am
This is a breakthrough, and I predict it will serve as a template for more sites. We’ve been calling this the “Year of the Cleanup,” and CNN’s another great example of how TV sites are embracing the philosophy.
If I could make one suggestion, it would be this: don’t segregate the videos solely to their own section. A story should have a video/text icon next to it to tell me what choices I have. I shouldn’t have to go to a separate section to find video versions. Just put that little video icon next to the stories that have associated video, and it’s a home run.
(Also, CNN.com’s insistence on the 16×9 stretching of their own 4×3 video remains one of the great mysteries in my life.)
Still, I don’t want to seem in the least big negative here - full credit where it’s due. I used to point to the current CNN site as a good example of how to clean up your act. This iteration is the logical next step. (I can only hope this means an end to those horrible, horrible mortgage ads.)
Let’s see some USAToday.com - style interactivity now!
4. MSM | June 1st, 2007 at 9:22 am
Wow. So much white space.
So clean.
So simple
So like MSNBC.com.
Some lead.
Others follow.
5. Michael Rosenblum | June 1st, 2007 at 9:30 am
In a word: Ungepatch.
Just as jumbled and crowded as before, but with bigger font. For the aging viewership no doubt. Are there no radical approaches t this? Its always the same, just minor fixes. Really minor.
6. thedetroitchannel | June 1st, 2007 at 9:34 am
i hope i didn’t sound negative.
i simply sought to answer what cory wrote was “unclear”.
sorry if i offended anyone.
7. liz | June 1st, 2007 at 10:44 am
i love, love, love their tabbed story pages. they really bring attention to the multimedia elements.
i don’t like how they did away with the lists of category top stories.
my only complaint: more white space. (kidding on that one)
8. thedetroitchannel | June 1st, 2007 at 1:25 pm
regarding ‘UPDATE’: if you clickon the US news tab ALL the stories are from ib affiliates. “north, south east and west”.
there will be a great way to monetize out-of-market visitors. you know that.
9. thedetroitchannel | June 1st, 2007 at 1:36 pm
come to think of it, if they now are putting their content under the tab ‘US news’ rather than in the Local section, do you think they finally began to agree that there is money to be made from out-of-market eyes?
there are a few who’ve argued that for quite some time.
10. thom | June 1st, 2007 at 1:51 pm
I really like the idea of integration of video and galleries on the story pages. I’ll have to live with it for a while to decide whether I like the implementation.
I like the shorter list of sections on the horizontal nav (did anyone ever go to the auto section?) and the hot topics.
But I’m not a fan of the aesthetic. I like minimal, but the fonts feel old to me with too much bold and too many sizes. Red is too strong a color to be the main color element.
That main list of stories is far to long to be scannable. I miss the list of headlines from the sections. In general the home page and the section pages seem unorganized to me. what is going in that huge feeback spot?
I don’t understand why they need to stretch the video either, but I really like the fact that they are trying to integrate it instead of forcing into a video ghetto. I never liked Pipeline and the old video player was very dated. But on the video page they took out the itunes like browsing with multiple sorts — which was the best part of that player.
11. Steve Safran | June 1st, 2007 at 3:20 pm
I amend my above comment a touch - they do have that video icon thing. It just wasn’t next to any of the stories when I visited the page initially. I saw a smattering just now. Good to see.
12. Andrew Sand | June 2nd, 2007 at 7:39 am
Awesome! Love it! My guess is some creative genius, perhaps like……Lila Eidi…..helped on this project. Great job everyone!
13. George McMahon | July 3rd, 2007 at 7:03 am
The new CNN.com looks horrible. There are either fewer news stories or they’ve placed them in areas unbeknownst to me. I think I’ll be getting my news from elsewhere from now on.
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