When your home page comes up, and one starts
to read a story, the page suddenly jumps down
to make room for a header ad at the top.

DON’T DO THAT.

Either put a space holder in that will be replaced
by an ad, or forego the ad revenue. You are a
news organization, and you are supposed to be
able to be scanned quickly — not annoyingly.

Your new home page is almost as bad as the
very sloooow MSMBC home page.

Please add “Save This” to the save features.

I would like to see more up to date news. Stories linger for days. Since you’ve changed you web site, you have less news content.

Why not give Larry King a one hour special a month? He should be able to find someone relavent once a month.

And, Lou Dobbs’ issues are a major embarassing. Sent him to Fox.

I’m still struggling with this redesign. I agree with Ed that the content is not there on the site anymore. The tabloid news still dominates. You have so many headlines in that top area. At least separate the real news out of there so I can scan and find it. I want to know what is important today. I don’t really care about these crazy videos you’re trying to push on me.

Your presentation of real news also needs more work. It is just not compelling yet. You need to adjust the tone. Stop talking down to us. You’re there to keep us informed and be our representative, not make us feel ignorant because we don’t know as much as you.

Aside from the news itself, the home page is still too difficult to scan. Besides the main headlines on the top of the page, you’ve overbuilt the headers so they distract from the content and the organization is all over the place. Please re-look at the visual style and content organization on all the pages, but especially these list pages. They are far too difficult to scan and absorb.

Likewise your information architecture is flawed. If you are placing these new sections on a top level, then they should be included in your consistent and persistent header or footer navigation. It look me several examinations of the home page to find links to two of these features. Still haven’t found tools. And then I assume they disappear on lower pages.

You should look at the recent MSNBC redesign to see how a new design can feel fresh and exciting and content can be organized to aid the user in scanning and comprehension ( please note the spacing between the headlines, the subtle underline and font treatments). That design feels precise, finished and accomplished. Unfortunately, your design still feels messy, unorganized and some what amateurish. But worst of all is distracts from the content.

I have to agree with the content being way too focused on tabloid news. “Baby Grace” is a horribly sad story, but it does not belong as your main headline for hours of the day. There were a lot more important stories today, namely the meeting of Middle Eastern leaders. This story has disappeared from the main page.

Can’t watch any live CNN on my Ubuntu Macbook. What’s up with that? I really wanted to watch the debates tonight and can’t because all our computers run Linux.
Furthermore many viewers of CNN International are also marginalized. That is really sad. If you report on people you should give everyone in all countries access. I don’t want to buy or steal Windows for this, not should anyone else have to.
Finally: You Tube/ CNN debate??? I thought Google was the biggest Linux user. How come you can’t fix this?

Also the FAQ technical page issues for the live video goes to” page not found.”

I like these new features.
And I love the pixel fonts you guys use for the photo captions and “subscribe RSS” button.
I wanna use some pixel fonts for a project of mine, so would you tell me what these fonts are and where can I buy them?
Thanks a lot.

By and large I like the page, my comment is on the choice of words that the ‘headline’ writers use. For example; saying Julia Roberts went ‘ballistic’ is perjorative and conjures up an image of her brandishing a gun at the photographers. It’s sensationalistic and more in keeping with TMZ than with a trusted news source like CNN.

This is just a statement from a regular viewer. Who does the proof reading of your news rolling across the bottom of our screens?

Do you know that there are errors, either in spelling or in typing each day.

Today, there were at least three in the 1/2 hour I was viewing.

i.e., Father and children went missing on a Christmas trek (sp).

Question mark in middle of one of the notations.

CNN is such a dependable and reliable source, it takes away from the appreciation of the network with these errors.

I enjoyed watching the best implosions of 2007. For some reason it reminded me of World Trade Center Building 7. That implosion was very special since it was banned from being shown by the media for some strange reason. You should do a special on the most famous implosions. You could include the north and south towers of WTC.

Mitch,

I wish there was a blog or way to get comments about programming and hosts to CNN management easily.

One of my pet peeves about talk radio, commentators, and analysts, particularly of the “conservative persuasion” is that they have very little formal education. Take Glenn Beck, for example. No college whatsoever. Rush Limbaugh: apparently no college. These folks are aired because they blather on, often without any REAL education, often forming half-baked , ill-informed opinions, after honing their skills as rabble-rousers. I realize that the business is all about ratings and money, but in a democracy, the press has a very serious responsibility to put people on the air who are educated and well-informed. What I see is, I think, a very bad trend for truly educating people in a democracy with regard to public affairs. We wind up getting the kind of government we’ve had for the past 7 years.

What is the best way for a viewer to communicate with the top executives at CNN? Which blog do they read?

Once upon a time before the days of CNN, cable, and the internet, a few local television stations around the country actually would put their general manager on the air for a half hour to an hour. The GM would take phone calls and respond to letters about how the station was run, its programming decisions, etc. I believe WFAA TV in Dallas was the first to do this in the ’60’s. Prescious airtime is no longer necessary now that email and blogging is available. Why not have the suits involved in a dialogue with viewers?

Thanks.

I think you should have a page for comments regarding the primarys. If you do please let me know how to get to it.

i cant understand why cnn dropped carville and begala regarding the election and political commentary in which they are experts in the process…there have been multiple viewpoints with supporters from both democratic camps…i am very dissappointed

Hello CNN, – We really like and appreciate CNN. Keep evolving, and take notice of your’ readers/listeners’ comments & suggestions. So far so good. And don’t sweat the small stuff, like occasional spelling/typing error. You are new and doing fine! We especially enjoy the Live & Video parts of the CNN Site. And LOVE the BLOGS, with Comments!! Might take a look at the Washington Post website to compare some feature areas. – And finally, – many like to ‘Comment’, but find it difficult unless they go to the Blog area. – Might just consider adding another area to Comment (after joining and affirming some identity of course). Thanks CNN, — Joe Ward 43040

CNN.com is great but the site is incompatible with firefox when it comes to displaying videos and some pictures. i.e. The link to the pictures of the fire in Germany when clicked on doesn’t display the pictures. The video link for ‘Clinton: I’m the only one’ for universal health care’ brings me to the video player page with the video player viewable but unable to play the video itself. If I use IE both the pictures and video show up and play like they are supposed to. Do you have plans to make CNN.com compatible with Firefox which has 17% of the market share and has been downloaded 400 million times??

CNN.com is great but the site is incompatible with firefox when it comes to displaying videos and some pictures. i.e. The link to the pictures of the fire in Germany when clicked on doesn’t display the pictures. The video link for ‘Clinton: I’m the only one’ for universal health care’ brings me to the video player page with the video player viewable but unable to play the video itself. If I use IE both the pictures and video show up and play like they are supposed to. Do you have plans to make CNN.com fully compatible with Firefox which has 17% of the market share and has been downloaded 400 million times??

I agree with Paula. We need somewhere to comment on the primaries. I don’t see how we can “disenfranchise” two states of their votes! Caucus Michigan and count Florida. Everyone’s name was on the ballot there. Hillary overwhelmingly won Florida and I wonder where the delegate count would be if she could count those! I still don’t understand why those states decided to vote early anyway. Seems fishy to me and a lot of other people. If Obama won two large states that weren’t counted, his camp would raise a big stink! If he can’t carry the largest states like Fla. Calif. and NY, I don’t think he has any chance of beating Mccain. Why should arbitrary rules possibly nominate a candidate that can’t win the general election? Why not just give it back to the Republicans if that’s the case. The Democrats picked a bad time to try to make “history” with a african-american or a woman. The next four years are critical, and we need someone with experience in the White House. Although Hillary is qualified, there appears to be too much sexism left in this country for her to win and while there is racism, I think the biggest drawback for Obama is his lack of experience. McCain is already all over that, and there will be more to come! I am in my fifties and this might be the first time I won’t vote! I can’t vote for McCain and the war and I won’t vote for Obama because of his inexperience. Our country is in real trouble…..not the time to put in a “trainee.” What average voter had even heard of Obama until last year? He’s just too unknown.

I love and enjoy very much the live court trials! However going off the air at 3pm has me extremely annoyed!!!! You get into a good trial, and instead of co ntinuing until at least 4o’clock, some other program comes on. People watch this channel because they love trials, as I do. Just at a crucial time in the trial, it goes off! Get with it and give us another hour of trial!!!!!!!

What is with trying to sell t-shirts with headlines?
Might this skew what is actually news when you are trying to make money news with an odd headline?

I have a mostly positive view of your news pages, but there are three mistakes you make over and over again: (1) you give much too much space to “ireports”, (2) you mis-use the video segments by placing too many stories on video for which video is irrelevant, and (3) those durn “quickie” ads tacked on at the beginnings of the videos are highly annoying and should be dumped, as they go against the whole idea of rapid access to a story which lies behind the video offerings.

I wish there could always be a comment on the main cnn.com picture. Often times there is a picture that goes with a story, and I want to know more about what is going on in that picture. Half the time however, when I click on the story, I get another picture or 3 but not the one that was on the homepage for cnn.

Please include a picture comment on the homepage OR include that picture with the story. Often times the picture is what draws a reader into the story and it is frustrating not to get the background on that picture when getting to the story!

Thanks, I have been reading CNN news daily for maybe 8 years.

One or two comments. I find that listings of many individual stories are repeated in Top Stories AND other sub-headings.

It also happens that the same story is repeated in sub-headings for example at the moment: “UK govt. takes majority stake in RBS”, is repeated under the World Business and Europe headings.

Given that these headings only list a couple of news items, your summary page becomes content poor.

I personnally feel that over the years the standard of the science and technology sections have dropped considerably. One example is that individual news items stay in the listings for a long time.

Thanks again, and keep it up.