Next Wednesday in #loweclass, Mira Lowe, senior editor for features at CNN Digital, will be visiting. For our blog assignment this week we are to evaluate the five CNN.com "channels" for which Lowe is directly responsible for – entertainment, tech, travel, health and living. CBS News has pages for entertainment, technology and health as well, so I will be comparing the efforts of CNN to my own beat, CBS'.
I thoroughly enjoyed looking through the entertainment page on CNN. The organization and simplicity really stood out to me and made it easy to find stories. What caught my attention the most – and what I have not witnessed on other websites – was the quote board. CNN provides a quote from a celebrity, but then links it to the accompanying article. It is a smart decision of their half because the quote in and of itself leaves readers with a sense of curiosity. The quote does not give the readers the full scope, but the link allows them to find out more information. CNN has other interesting features on its entertainment page as well. Photo galleries, interactive polls and news about the latest events in the television, music and film industries provide for hours of content that is worth the read.
Compared to the CNN entertainment page, CBS lacks in some areas. They still have lots of content, but it is not organized in an efficient, easy to access way. I did not notice the different categories – television, movies, celebrities, etc. – because they were in one long column on the side. Although it is nice, readers cannot click further on any topic to find more information in the category. CBS' content is great, but its entertainment section would be superior if they categorized information based on topic and type of multimedia used – text, photo gallery, or video.
As a self-proclaimed organization freak, I loved that the CNN technology page was, once again, categorized by subject. CNN allows readers to filter stories based on category, which include social media, mobile, web, gaming and gadgets, innovation, and tech biz. They are also color coded to allow for easier retrieval.
CBS has a combined science and technology page. Nevertheless, the layout looks similar to the CNN page. The biggest headline in the category is the most prominent on the page. Directly to the right are the most popular stories. However, CNN keeps this section solely to the most popular in the section where as CBS has it for the entire website. Directly under it, though, are other articles related to science and technology. I found myself more interested in CNN's technology page because of its use of organization. They allowed me the opportunity to easily filter articles by subjects that interested me.
The third "channel" that I looked at on CNN was its travel page. It was another aesthetically pleasing and interesting page to browse through. I found myself spending the most time looking at the different photo galleries they provided under their travel snapshots. The pictures were breathtaking. Seeing the photo of the Great Barrier Reef in "CNN's 2013 travel wish list" only made me want to go there more than I already do. What was cool about this photo slideshow and accompanying article were the memories different CNN corespondents shared from their time traveling to these places. CNN could have simply described the place based on information they researched. However, the journalists went the extra step to include personal stories and details from people who actually spent times in places such as Mongolia, Jordan, Brazil, etc.
CBS does not have a travel page on its website. This disappoints me because it is something that I, as well as many other people, love to do. CBS could gain more interest in its site if they did create one.
Next up on both websites was the health page. I loved CNN's health page. They had several places where information was categorized. CNN provides their readers with anything and everything they need to know about health. There is even an expert question and answer section where readers can submit any questions they want professional answers to. The Chart is a CNN health blog run by Dr. Sanjaya Gupta, CNN chief medical corespondent and Elizabeth Cohen, senior medical corespondent. It is a well organized blog that provides even more in-depth coverage of health related content from experts.
CBS has a well put together health page on its website too. What they lack, though, is the expect. CNN has experts on its staff that answers questions and provides medical advice for readers. CBS does not have that. Yes, they ask for expert opinion in their articles, but they are not staffed by the media outlet. I believe it is the on-staff experts for CNN that give them an edge over other news sources in the health department.
The final "channel" I analyzed on CNN was the living – personal wellness, love life, work balance and home style – section. It encompasses everything you could think of relating to lifestyle such as school, work and the home. The editor's choice at the top caught my attention first. It gives the readers a little inside scoop into what that person is interested in. From cute and cuddly animals in the snow to a woman that lost 123 pounds with Zumba, all the different categories on the lifestyle page left me engaged in it for a while.
A lifestyle section was not an option on CBS. Just as I suggested with the travel category, CBS could gain more traffic to its site if they provided readers with a page dedicated to anything from the home to work and so on. It is a topic that relates to everybody and one that interests a lot of people. The media outlet could benefit by increasing the content on its website in this category.
CNN and CBS have very similar and well put together specialty pages on their websites. However, there were a few changes I would make to CBS' in order for it to rise above what CNN has provided for its readers. The content and story selection is outstanding. However, I wished they had more special pages such as travel and living. Also, the lack of organization in different areas leaves me wanting more. The CNN "channel" pages are spectacular. They are well organized and the information on each rivals that of its competitors. If I had to choose the specialty pages on my website or those on CNN, I would pick CNN.
I thoroughly enjoyed looking through the entertainment page on CNN. The organization and simplicity really stood out to me and made it easy to find stories. What caught my attention the most – and what I have not witnessed on other websites – was the quote board. CNN provides a quote from a celebrity, but then links it to the accompanying article. It is a smart decision of their half because the quote in and of itself leaves readers with a sense of curiosity. The quote does not give the readers the full scope, but the link allows them to find out more information. CNN has other interesting features on its entertainment page as well. Photo galleries, interactive polls and news about the latest events in the television, music and film industries provide for hours of content that is worth the read.
Compared to the CNN entertainment page, CBS lacks in some areas. They still have lots of content, but it is not organized in an efficient, easy to access way. I did not notice the different categories – television, movies, celebrities, etc. – because they were in one long column on the side. Although it is nice, readers cannot click further on any topic to find more information in the category. CBS' content is great, but its entertainment section would be superior if they categorized information based on topic and type of multimedia used – text, photo gallery, or video.
As a self-proclaimed organization freak, I loved that the CNN technology page was, once again, categorized by subject. CNN allows readers to filter stories based on category, which include social media, mobile, web, gaming and gadgets, innovation, and tech biz. They are also color coded to allow for easier retrieval.
CBS has a combined science and technology page. Nevertheless, the layout looks similar to the CNN page. The biggest headline in the category is the most prominent on the page. Directly to the right are the most popular stories. However, CNN keeps this section solely to the most popular in the section where as CBS has it for the entire website. Directly under it, though, are other articles related to science and technology. I found myself more interested in CNN's technology page because of its use of organization. They allowed me the opportunity to easily filter articles by subjects that interested me.
The third "channel" that I looked at on CNN was its travel page. It was another aesthetically pleasing and interesting page to browse through. I found myself spending the most time looking at the different photo galleries they provided under their travel snapshots. The pictures were breathtaking. Seeing the photo of the Great Barrier Reef in "CNN's 2013 travel wish list" only made me want to go there more than I already do. What was cool about this photo slideshow and accompanying article were the memories different CNN corespondents shared from their time traveling to these places. CNN could have simply described the place based on information they researched. However, the journalists went the extra step to include personal stories and details from people who actually spent times in places such as Mongolia, Jordan, Brazil, etc.
CBS does not have a travel page on its website. This disappoints me because it is something that I, as well as many other people, love to do. CBS could gain more interest in its site if they did create one.
Next up on both websites was the health page. I loved CNN's health page. They had several places where information was categorized. CNN provides their readers with anything and everything they need to know about health. There is even an expert question and answer section where readers can submit any questions they want professional answers to. The Chart is a CNN health blog run by Dr. Sanjaya Gupta, CNN chief medical corespondent and Elizabeth Cohen, senior medical corespondent. It is a well organized blog that provides even more in-depth coverage of health related content from experts.
CBS has a well put together health page on its website too. What they lack, though, is the expect. CNN has experts on its staff that answers questions and provides medical advice for readers. CBS does not have that. Yes, they ask for expert opinion in their articles, but they are not staffed by the media outlet. I believe it is the on-staff experts for CNN that give them an edge over other news sources in the health department.
The final "channel" I analyzed on CNN was the living – personal wellness, love life, work balance and home style – section. It encompasses everything you could think of relating to lifestyle such as school, work and the home. The editor's choice at the top caught my attention first. It gives the readers a little inside scoop into what that person is interested in. From cute and cuddly animals in the snow to a woman that lost 123 pounds with Zumba, all the different categories on the lifestyle page left me engaged in it for a while.
A lifestyle section was not an option on CBS. Just as I suggested with the travel category, CBS could gain more traffic to its site if they provided readers with a page dedicated to anything from the home to work and so on. It is a topic that relates to everybody and one that interests a lot of people. The media outlet could benefit by increasing the content on its website in this category.
CNN and CBS have very similar and well put together specialty pages on their websites. However, there were a few changes I would make to CBS' in order for it to rise above what CNN has provided for its readers. The content and story selection is outstanding. However, I wished they had more special pages such as travel and living. Also, the lack of organization in different areas leaves me wanting more. The CNN "channel" pages are spectacular. They are well organized and the information on each rivals that of its competitors. If I had to choose the specialty pages on my website or those on CNN, I would pick CNN.