The Drudge Report is one of the Internet's most popular sites for individuals to get their political news. Its layout is far from aesthetically pleasing, but, to paraphrase another not so lovely modern-day icon, Larry the Cable Guy, it gets the job done.
Though looking like something designed in a primitive version of Microsoft Works, the site's design accomplishes exactly what it intends to, delivering the site's irresistible headlines with lightning speed (and serving ads along the way).
The Drudge features a confoundingly simple, though inundative, layout:
It has become crystal clear the past few days that politics tend to be a quite ugly thing. Partisanship, asininity and yes, even racism, run rampant through the halls of Washington D.C. If the latest MSNBC debacle has proved anything, it is probably this.
As the Huffington Post stated about the site yesterday, "Beauty is merely one component of design, like usability, speed, cost, and time. Design is not decoration, it's a concerted effort to solve a particular problem. Some sites don't need to be fast. Some don't need to be cheap. Others, like Drudge, don't need to be pretty."
Perhaps Barack Obama could learn something from the Drudge Report's uberly efficient design. Catch words and idealistic presentation only count for so much in this world of ways and means. They may get you elected, (or sell you some snake oil), but real, efficient action is objective - not in the eye of the beholder.
Though looking like something designed in a primitive version of Microsoft Works, the site's design accomplishes exactly what it intends to, delivering the site's irresistible headlines with lightning speed (and serving ads along the way).
The Drudge features a confoundingly simple, though inundative, layout:
- An ad
- A giant headline area for important news
- Three even rows of underlined story titles: "Mark Halperin Calls Obama a Dick"; "Halperin Suspended Indefinitely"; "Growing List of MSNBC Suspensions"; etc.
As the Huffington Post stated about the site yesterday, "Beauty is merely one component of design, like usability, speed, cost, and time. Design is not decoration, it's a concerted effort to solve a particular problem. Some sites don't need to be fast. Some don't need to be cheap. Others, like Drudge, don't need to be pretty."
Perhaps Barack Obama could learn something from the Drudge Report's uberly efficient design. Catch words and idealistic presentation only count for so much in this world of ways and means. They may get you elected, (or sell you some snake oil), but real, efficient action is objective - not in the eye of the beholder.
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