If I may take a moment to whinge and whine a tad; Websites like this infuriate me because for all their "design", sites like Reddit and HN (which are basically just lists) are delivering news in a much more consumable fashion, better suited to the eating habits of the common or garden user.
Who's to blame? The designers with their need to make their own mark? The suits with their demands that the business needs be met regardless of the way the world actually works? Probably both.
Also, I think Digg deserves more credit for finding a successful mid point between lists and designed layouts.
That's not to say there's no room for design, but this new NYT layout is anything but design. It's the same wall of information with sporadic and indecipherable levels of emphasis made to look mildly palatable for another couple of years. If the NYT has anything interesting to say, I'll wait for it to appear on HN, Digg or Reddit.
Who's to blame? The designers with their need to make their own mark? The suits with their demands that the business needs be met regardless of the way the world actually works? Probably both.
Also, I think Digg deserves more credit for finding a successful mid point between lists and designed layouts.
That's not to say there's no room for design, but this new NYT layout is anything but design. It's the same wall of information with sporadic and indecipherable levels of emphasis made to look mildly palatable for another couple of years. If the NYT has anything interesting to say, I'll wait for it to appear on HN, Digg or Reddit.