Huggable lovable Websites
Rebuilding a consensus ideology is less a movement and more of an expansion: it seeks to enlarge the center, engulfing with it people from both sides of the spectrum like an emerging supernova.
The internet has provided us with a way to do just that.
There are numerous websites, some listed on my sidebar, that are devoted to consensus thought and centrist ideology.
However, these sites tend not to get the same exposure as ones on the other sides.
More liberal sites such as MoveOn.org receive much more attention.
There are usually two facets to designing a website, 1) Content and, 2) Usability.
The problem with most political websites, in fact many websites at an level in general, is that they may focus on only one of those facets and overlook the other. The facet that tends to be overlooked the most is usability because quite frankly, it isn't as sexy as content.
Case and point George W. Bush's website for President in 2004. Chalk full of content, interactive games, photos, ect. but good luck trying to navigate the site. It had more layers on it than a Buffalonian shoveling snow in December.
While it is important to have interaction, and valuable content, it also must be presented in a USABLE and easy to navigate manner.
admittedly, the sites about Centrism and Consensus thought are fairly usable in terms of layout, but for the most part, the content does very little to promote usability.
Ok, in other words, most of them are boring.
MoveOn is successful not because there are more liberals in this country than moderates. It is successful because they have fun, interesting and interactive content that is presented in an easy to use format.
The article by Henry Jenkins is a retort on some claims that the Internet leads to a breakdown of community rather than a stronger tie to it.
Centrist sites and blogs such as Centerfield are examples that prove Mr. Jenkins' point.
Most consensus sites are devoted to discussion...discussion that would only interest someone who is already in that frame of mind and therefore does little to achieve what should be our goal, and that is EXPANDING that center.
But this discussion creates a community...certainly they are like minded in some sense, but aren't all communities? Don't people who move to the Suburbs all share a like mindedness?
The truth is that the Internet, unlike the Suburbs, at least has the potential to reach across barriers and bring people together, like minded or not, towards a common bond.
The internet has provided us with a way to do just that.
There are numerous websites, some listed on my sidebar, that are devoted to consensus thought and centrist ideology.
However, these sites tend not to get the same exposure as ones on the other sides.
More liberal sites such as MoveOn.org receive much more attention.
There are usually two facets to designing a website, 1) Content and, 2) Usability.
The problem with most political websites, in fact many websites at an level in general, is that they may focus on only one of those facets and overlook the other. The facet that tends to be overlooked the most is usability because quite frankly, it isn't as sexy as content.
Case and point George W. Bush's website for President in 2004. Chalk full of content, interactive games, photos, ect. but good luck trying to navigate the site. It had more layers on it than a Buffalonian shoveling snow in December.
While it is important to have interaction, and valuable content, it also must be presented in a USABLE and easy to navigate manner.
admittedly, the sites about Centrism and Consensus thought are fairly usable in terms of layout, but for the most part, the content does very little to promote usability.
Ok, in other words, most of them are boring.
MoveOn is successful not because there are more liberals in this country than moderates. It is successful because they have fun, interesting and interactive content that is presented in an easy to use format.
The article by Henry Jenkins is a retort on some claims that the Internet leads to a breakdown of community rather than a stronger tie to it.
Centrist sites and blogs such as Centerfield are examples that prove Mr. Jenkins' point.
Most consensus sites are devoted to discussion...discussion that would only interest someone who is already in that frame of mind and therefore does little to achieve what should be our goal, and that is EXPANDING that center.
But this discussion creates a community...certainly they are like minded in some sense, but aren't all communities? Don't people who move to the Suburbs all share a like mindedness?
The truth is that the Internet, unlike the Suburbs, at least has the potential to reach across barriers and bring people together, like minded or not, towards a common bond.
5 Comments:
First off, having gone to school in Buffalo, I am deeply offended at the cheap shot. Second, I think the deeper problem with Centrism is its not exciting. Hey, lets go out and... balance a budget? It lacks the ideological fervor that liberals and conservatives have, they have an overarching vision and an end game. Centrism on the other hand can seem more like a participation ribbon.
By GWO Dem, at 9:34 AM
Dear GWO,
Having been born and raised in Buffalo and actually shoveled snow in December there, I think I am entitled to a cheap shot every now and then ;)
Your point on Centrism is well taken and in fact is part of my point.
While ideological fervor is what motivates many movements, it should be the goal of consensus followers to point out the division that type of fervor causes.
By Damien, at 9:51 AM
I was a frequent visitory of the Bush 2004 website and found it very easy to navigate. Prehaps the difficulty was in the actual content found on the site and not the usability? I know when I visit MoveOn.org, I get a headache. Granted, it's very clean and easy to read but the content drives me crazy. If you oppose information, whether it's found on the Web or other media, more than likely the entire experience will be disagreeable.
By iammeblog, at 1:58 PM
iamme,
Haha. I never thought of it that way, but you could be on to something.
Perhaps there is something to be said for pyschology in all of this.
I will say this however. The internet consulting firm I work for did an analysis of both Bush and Kerry's sites and determined that while neither were very good...Kerry's site was slightly more user friendly.
And in case your thinking it is just bias speaking...the firm is actually a Republican one ;)
By Damien, at 3:59 PM
Good point about making the content interesting. I agree that MoveOn is very successful because of their content. While I haven't been to their website in forever, I know many people who receive their e-mails. Their e-mail list (and donor list) are probably even more valuable than anything they could post on the website.
By Jorge, at 10:46 PM
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