I picked NPR Music because I visit the site quite regularly so the design must be doing something right to keep my interest. One of the main aspects I notice is that text does not overwhelm the page, a la The New York Times. Each section has minimal description; it provides just enough information to urge you to click the link and find out more. On top of this, images on the main page complement the accompanying text, also not becoming an overwhelming presence.
I prefer strict organization and the site designers seem to have had that in mind as well. The sections are clearly defined according to genre or function (live performances, interviews, song previews, etc.). An NPR reader would not have difficulty searching for their desired topic. The site's main page features many options to choose from but the uncluttered, basic approach to presenting their selection facilitates rather than frustrates. And, the reader becomes further engaged with the absorption of information because the site is focused on linking to other pages. This prevents passive reading and frees the page of unnecessary overflow.
This leads to the second question of how contemporary media culture will affect content presentation. As a proponent of reading a whole lot of information, I want to say that "less is more" will not permanently take hold. But I, like everyone else, am run by time, and time favors "less is more." Compound the numerous sources we are offered to sort through, and content that neglects brevity loses all functionality and convenience. So, the trend of dwindling word counts and lengthy descriptions will unfortunately continue.
I go to their website as well, and the layout of the website is very simple and straightforward. It is very self-explanatory, so I absolutely love it.
ReplyDeleteI think this is why I love NPR so much. They somehow fuse news with music...giving a fresh outlook for the younger generations without putting them off with too much information.
ReplyDeleteI agree with the dilemma of fewer words being placed on the page. I do much of my reading online as well but time certainly is a factor. I have never used NPR myself but I can see that it has a very straightforward setup, like most media outlets. Something interesting to point out though is that while people are "running out of time," many sites like NPR I presume are adding options that take more time. An example of this would be webcasts/podcasts, or entire shows. It would take just as much time to watch one of those as it would to read a few articles yet people have no problem finding time to watch the information rather than read it.
ReplyDeleteI've never used NPR Music, but the first thing I noticed was the colors. I like how it uses bold colors to attract the user's attention. I think the site looks a little clustered at the top, but it looks easy to navigate, so it's not that big of a deal.
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