Real Simple-Taken a little too seriously Published by Unknown - On 12:59 PM - This post haved 0 comments

Real Simple, the DIY magazine created for those who have too much time on their hands, is an up and coming magazine that is gaining momentum from the frustrated and jilted ex-wannabe Martha Stewart readers.

It features articles mainly about household items and crafts to do on your own to create your own space at home with 115 easy steps and an indefinite supply of money, ($50 for a candle, really?)

This month, featured a four page spread of a lovely and overpriced garden equipped with a whole lot of non-flowers and cacti.

Moving onto judging the actual design and not the content (clearly I'm still upset about the insinuation of purchasing a $50 candle).

The photos are well in focus, but not very interesting. If Real Simple wanted to showcase a quaint garden, I believe they should've found one that was more colorful. I will say that the pictures are placed nicely, but routinely and the text boxes are broken up to provide the reader with the proper amount of information and visuals.

All in all, Real Simple's magazine in real simple layout, it's just not real simple to acquire the amount of money to pay for all this stuff that they suggest to you. I'll stick to my 99 cent candled at Wal-Mart, thank you.

Good House(and Photo!)keeping Published by Unknown - On 12:42 PM - This post haved 0 comments

Generally, when I think about GoodHousekeeping, I don't think fantastic photo graphs. But browsing through their latest issue, I was actually quite impressed by their design and photograph capabilities. Clearly, judging by all three photos, this is a magazine geared towards women, and it seems like they are really relying on their stereotypical demographic with a modern twist.

Not all women are stay-at-home moms and Martha Stewart-like homemakers which is why I think they added something that appeals to the more modern day woman with a keen interest in fashion and accessorizing (surprise!).

The picture which features the woman in the pink dress is bright, colorful and creative with its picture frames of luxurious shoes. The flowers in the tea cup, is a lovely picture on its own, but with the font, cup and flower color all within the same monochromatic family, it makes for an even more serene and elegant picture.

Of course, what woman's magazine wouldn't be complete without the "do-it-all" woman who overcame some tragedy or dilemma. The picture of Stacey, though standard is well in focus, centered, but also a little boring. Even though this is a profile piece, another background may have suited this story a bit more to add a little more interest.

Judging CNN's homepage Published by Unknown - On 2:24 PM - This post haved 0 comments

 

CNN may once have been the world's leading source for national and international and broadcast news, but in my former post, I mentioned the newly founded U.S. version of Al Jazeera is gaining credibility and followers.

Recently, I have heard viewers express their displeasure with CNN. Audiences have criticized the network since it has shifted its focus to providing more pop culture events instead of reporting hard news. Even when news is reported, some critics claim that the liberal agenda is shining through and breaches the journalist code of standards of neutralism.

If CNN wants to compete with AL Jazeera and remain faithful to its fans, its content both on air and off, must be professionally produced but also intriguing.

Unlike Al Jazeera America, CNN's homepage is saturated with interactive advertisements that are exceptionally distracting and bothersome to the reader. In an effort to gain more readers, especially from a younger generation, perhaps CNN could incorporate those interactive features found in the advertisements and use them for their features instead. This strategy may seem juvenile, but design features could save CNN's brand and increase interest while highlighting their best stories.

The content is very squared off throughout the website, which is very appealing and concise. Clearly, CNN's designers follow the box rule.

The site has its trending topics along the top of the webpage and also includes a live streaming of what is on t.v. which is very unique. Additionally, the categories of the articles are listed on the top and middle of the homepage-which ensures that readers will see the content not once, but at least twice while scrolling.

There are quizzes, polls, stock market information and weather information on the far right side-graphics that make sure they appeal to a broad audience.

While CNN can take a lesson from Al Jazeera in terms of content, reporting hard news and remaining neutral, CNN can also take a page from CNN's book by adding more features like CNN has on their homepage like the polls, videos, and reports about the market and weather.

Al Jazeera- The New and Better CNN Published by Unknown - On 4:51 PM - This post haved 0 comments

 

 

As a relatively new start-up website for the American version, Al Jazeera has started on a good foot. With cool-toned color schemes and its ornate logo, A.J. gives American and British based news reporting a bad name. Al Jazeera is gaining interest and momentum in the world of journalism. Since they base their reports on facts and unbiased opinions, their branding must also say so.

The content of the articles is precisely places throughout the entire website from top to bottom. There is an outlined border surrounding the text, the text remains level and packed very nicely. This is somewhat unusual for me to see since most websites tend to cut off their columns at different heights especially towards the bottom. A.J. could be doing this intentionally to show that their graphics are just as carefully placed as their stories are carefully researched and reported.

Miniature images are aligned with their title and category which the article falls under. This is convenient for the reader since A.J. is a new site and showcasing the offered categories can entice readers to continue to visit their preferred section.

To keep up with the evolution of news stories that news publishers face on a daily basis, A.J. has links to whatever is currently trending, online or coming up.

Much like CNN however, there are several editions available to the reader which can allude to diversity among the audience.

The website is simple and clean, but still looks like it is still in its baby stages of becoming a fully accredited website. A little more design would tremendously help the website's appeal. Whether it be stronger graphics, more lively photos, a rotating screen or even something as simple as adjusting the font height or color could add more dimension to the page.

Newseum's Museum Published by Unknown - On 3:50 PM - This post haved 0 comments

Newseum.com is actually a website based off of the actual museum in Washington D.C. because its contents can already be predetermined, designs for the page may be limited and changed only weekly, monthly or semi-annually depending on the rotation. In any event, the task to present the material represents a greater dilemma since readers are unlikely to return every day or so for new content.

In this case, the Newseum front page does an appealing job of creating a website based off of an actual place and that also gives the reader a lot of sources.

In addition to the tabs that may be permanent such as the "buy your tickets" and "plan your visit" tab, the "News" tab offers more articles that appear to publish new articles every few days. The dominant art on this site is a rotating screen of the current exhibits and upcoming events. This is a enticing feature since it may lure in readers with different interests.

The sidebars are neatly placed on both sides of the main screen. But the left offers more journalistic stories while the right is focused mainly on the museum and its presentation.

In general, Newseum.com is very well organized, even though there is a large amount of unused space surrounding the homepage, the space does not seem unused since the text is concisely boxed in and the blue bordering gives a more decorative element.

The Experts of Beauty Published by Unknown - On 3:37 PM - This post haved 0 comments

While Allure may not be the most advanced looking web design, especially for one of the nation's leading women's magazine, the website offers some simple detail while adhering to the main design rules.

For an online magazine, Allure seems to be following the newspaper guidelines of design. For example, it follows the box rule pretty thoroughly almost throughout the entire website as you scroll down. The colors remain faithful and complimentary to the magazine logo. The rule that it "bends" a bit is the two font rule-a rule stating that a publication is only limited to two types of fonts. Allure, however, varies that rule and breaks up the text and design by using the same font, or similar style, but bolding the headings, varying it in size or, occasionally, using a cursive font for a more feminine touch. The cursive may be perceived as unprofessional in some instances, but in this, it carries over well since it is after all, a beauty magazine intended for women.

The graphics are neatly placed into three seperate columns. This allows maximum usage of space, but is also appealing to the reader and clear to view. This does give a more "newspaper-y" feel which may be a downside.

Allure also has interactive features such as a poll and videos ranging from how-to's and features.

As a critic, this webpage is off to a good start in terms of content , but as far as creative layout goes, there is a long way to go.

The Los Angeles Crimes Published by Unknown - On 4:55 PM - This post haved 0 comments

The Los Angeles Times website is in some serious need of artistic and creative intervention. The website is sparse, unimaginative and boring. So boring, that it is almost unlawful, and a crime. One would think that since this is an online website, more features and design would be implemented-things that would not otherwise be possible in a print edition. But in this case, the creativity seems to be displayed in their print versions.

On the homepage, there is little dominant art aside from the one featured picture which does not, at least, today, have any sort of action or interest.

The rest of the images or graphics lack any kind of artistic or informative context. The layout, although it is very clean, is very simple with just visuals and black and white text. There isn't even any kind of movement to the page, whether it be a slide show or a simple excerpt from a story while hovering over the title.

While it is easy for me to criticize the simplicity of the site, this could be entirely intentional for the times.

It is no secret that printed newspapers are struggling financially, and perhaps in order to lure and entice readers to keep or buy subscriptions to the L.A. times, they keep their online material plain, while their printed editions are much more visual and alluring.


One interesting feature of the webpage is offered at the very bottom of the homepage. The reader is able to download a PDF version of the daily front page only. While it may allow access to see the real visuals and access of the print version, it doesn't give the reader any real push to purchase a physical subscription to the paper.