New site design. First glance: it's pretty gross.

Here we go again. Isn't this the third redesign in two years or such? (Remember the short-lived Santa Fe design? And I'm thrilled that they're still devoted to baby-sh!t yellow.) I clicked around tonight; they apparently didn't transfer over all the old comment threads ... again. And it looks like they couldn't figure out how to transfer the user database over, and people are having to register. Sigh. They just don't understand how seriously people take their comment threads. People are annoyed.

Also, the site won't load right in one of my browsers. You'd think they'd have tested it before launching.

I always say it: If they would put the amount of energy into their reporting (and editing and writing) as they do in mediocre Web redesigns, they wouldn't be in so much trouble as a media conglomerate.

But they are determined to become an "information center," instead of a newspaper, so this is what you end up with: Web 1.8 (OK, that was Todd's phrase, not mine.)

I have two favorite things so far: The 1983 deco font they're using for their new Clarion-Ledger logo -- very Reagan era (and what is wrong with their newspaper logo anyway? Not look information center enough!?!).

And I just love to pieces that the site is "powered by you and The Clarion-Ledger('s old logo)."

We should start a pool on how long it'll be until they redesign again, and dump all the old comment threads.

I didn't notice whether they started letting users link out again or not. And I don't really care enough to go look. I've toured the 1980s enough for one night. ;-)

It's bad. So bad, in fact, I'm considering deleting it from my bookmarks. I can't find a darn thing. Hubby only posted on Marshall Ramsey's blog, and he can't do that right now, so he's not too happy about it either.

My Boyfriend said it looked like "Ridgeland Vomitted a Newspaper Website".

So we just began calling the font the "Ridgeland Font".

I'm about to go play around on it a bit. Last night it was taking a long time to load.

Anyone who likes that redesign should be sent to electroshock therapy. It's cluttered, hard to read and impossible to navigate.

Ooo. Electroshock therapy. :)

Different, but unimpressed. Now if they can just redesign themselves, then we'll have something to talk about.

Like the design or not, it's all window-dressing. The problem, of course, is that it links to the same old content and press releases.

As a journalist, it kills me how the tops of the stories look now—not like stories with bylines, but with all the Digg, etc., clutter. They really are trying not to be a newspaper anymore. It's weird and rather sad.

Oh, and get this. Their events calendar lists all of FIVE events for today, and nothing new. You'll find 43 events for today on our new online events calendar.

Also, it'll be intriguing to watch a statewide newspaper to a good events calendar. Do you just list preschool registrations for Jackson, or for every town? And if you don't list them all, won't the advertisers up in Corinth get offended because their town's stuff isn't in the "information center"?

This will be fun to watch.

Core competencies, Ledger. Core competencies.

How did I know that I would log into the JFP this morning and the CL re-design would be one of the most talked about subjects? Funny.

Yes, people in Mississippi love to talk about the international media conglomerate that tries to control the flow of news and information in the state, and tries to take over distribution outlets of locally owned media.

Damn right: This is your place to talk about media literacy. I had three people at ArtMix tell me last night that their favorite thing on the JFP Web site is the media criticism.

We're also talking about Farish Street, downtown development and urban-suburban rifts this a.m. as well. Why not check into those threads as well? Or, are you one of the corporate media folks who show up here to tell us to stop criticizing the corporate media. If so, you're wasting your time.

I sure hope they don't use the passive voice on the website!

It's doubtful it will be a comprehensive events calendar. They usually lean towards advertisers only for that stuff.

Tanner: Why can't we criticize their website redesign? I understand that everyone gossips in the Jackson Media Market, so I know we're not doing anything that's new here.

I sure hope they don't use the passive voice on the website!

This is an excellently crafted sentence, and great use of the active voice. Well done. ;-)

I assume this is a mistake, but it is a Freudian one: Right now, on the front page of Ledger Online 1.8, the top category of "news" is "Sports"; then the second one is "Sports"; third is "Opinion" and the fourth is "Business."

They really are ceding the NEWSpaper facade, aren't they?

Also, the User News, designed just like their reporters' stories with all that junk at the top, cracks me up.

I think we can call this an overreaction to the fear of what the Internet is going to do to them. And it is truly a bastardization of the idea of a Web 2.0 approach. It reminds me of when they put out the Weekend rag, supposedly to attract young readers, but designed and written for people who don't know a fake restaurant review when they see one. They just ought to stick with basic reporting and stay away from arenas that they end up looking silly in.

Ledger: Re-focus on reporting and editing; then put those stories online. Once you've got that figured out, then venture into blogging and such. But goodness gracious.

Also, it's typical that they have no female staff blogger showing up over there. They truly don't seem to think that women have an opinion about anything real.

This is funny. On their new weird blog pages, you have to read the comments from the bottom up, and then return to the bottom to go to the next page. People over there are complaining about this idiocy; one wrote:

Has anyone else noticed that not only do you have to read the posts from bottom to top, but after doing that, you have to go back DOWN to the bottom to go to the next page. The person who designed this is not the sharpest knife in the drawer.

I think I've seen about all I need to see of the CL 1.8. Movin' along.

In other fun news, did you know that ANYONE can register on the CL and run their very own blog?

This is almost too much fun to handle. Just thinking about the possibilities for subterfuge is making me vibrate with excitement.

They had to change, The JFP is what's up. They can't hang. The color on their website is doing a number on my eyes, talk about loud! Whew!!

Yeah. Why can't we criticize the new design? We'd probably be criticizing a new design for the JFP if it happens. I'm an equal opportunity curmudgeon. :)

I'm an equal opportunity curmudgeon. :)

I can vouch for that, Lady. ;-)

OUCH! That hurt! :)

But then again, look who I'm married to. It had to rub off sooner or later...

I'm wondering if I've been insulted or complimented.

I'll take that as a compliment.

It is a compliment. I love you and the Lady—and how you are respectfully independent. You can agree, but without taking everything personally. You clearly have strong self-images; several people who have melted down here, and then tried to exact revenge due to their center of attention deficit disorder, could take lessons from y'all. ;-)

Ledger user comments on the new "information center redesign:

This crap is getting on my nerves. [...]

Help, I've fallen down and cannot get up!
I don't know where I am. I had to reregister TWICE before it would 'take me.'
It wasn't broke, so why did they try to fix it? For two or three days, it wouldn't bring up the Letters to the Editors. I hate the 'slide show' for the featurerd articles. I am trying to read the first one with these tired old eyes and viola here comes the second. I have never seen this on any newspaper site, and I visit several each day. Several links you can click on and nada happens.

Why don't they change the online letter more often? It goes on forever with the same old letters, then suddenly it is changed and you are overwhelmed. Three or four new ones a day would be ok, but a glob of twenty or twenty-five blows the mind.
The 'new and improved' lettering for the masthead draws in by movements of the mouth. NEVER get rid of the old style lettering. Would the New York Times or Washington Post consider that? Not in a million years.
Thanks for reading. Tune in later when I have more gripes.[...]

"New and Improved!" it ain't, at least so far. 3 times to re-register and now it won't hold the 'keep me logged in' thing so I have to log in every time.
The scrolling headlines are more distracting than informative and the tiny type on the 'latest headlines' is a pain. Between the ad and the masthead at the top of the page, no matter what you're trying to view you have to scroll down to get to it.
Where the heck is Jack Sunn? When you pull it up from the search bar it doesn't tell you what section it's in either.
The new C-L logo is awful too, and why is everything so darn SLOW now? [...]

This new site is indeed a dump. For the first two or three days, I couldn't find anything.
Then on Sunday, everything was ok. But this morning, the computer doesn't remember me, the thread I started is gone, and I cannot find the Letters to the Editor.
I don't have the time in the morning to try to figure this out. I need to get ready for work. In the past, everything was a snap.
Go baaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaccccccccccccccccccccccccccccccccccckkkkkkkkkkkkkkkk [...]

Sheesh, it's getting complicated now..... [...]

They added to much stuff, that doesn't really amount to a hill of beans. I can't post from any other computer but home............WTF is that all about?

These are all legitimate gripes—the site is a navigational nightmare. It's filled with lots of window-dressing of what they think is supposed to happen, but there doesn't seem to be any real understanding of or respect for how people *use* the Web. A bunch of junk—quantity over quality—doesn't mean people are going to like it better. In fact, just the opposite.

Oh, and not using their own flag (logo) is the dumbest thing ever. Even their big brother uses theirs. And it's not like a hip version to appeal to young people, so they can't even make that argument (not that it would be a good one, either). They're just clueless. I'd feel bad for them if they hadn't made every effort to ruin us and other local publications (not to mention try to disparage our reputations).

What I don't get is why the old-schoolers over there don't have the nerve to stand up for real journalism over this hoo-haa.

This is so typical of corporate-think top-down marketing: If the product doesn't sell, change the packaging, change the advertising, change the colors. Do everything, in fact, but change the product to make it better.

Those of us who have been bloodied and bruised in those trenches have a phrase for the syndrome: Painting the pig's toenails. Might be prettier, but it doesn't smell any better.

I think that's the worst part of it all, is the masthead. The font is horrendous.

And thanks for your comments above, Donna. Taking things personally ain't worth the strife. :)

You know, if they re-made the font and masthead into PASSIVE voice I think all of you would have a stroke.

You know, if they re-made the font and masthead into PASSIVE voice I think all of you would have a stroke.

That's it, exactly! You nailed it...that font is in passive voice!

I said "IF" you didnt have to stroke out over it as-is!!!!