build/news-websites-are-dumpster-fires/index.html


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<h1 id="news-websites-are-dumpster-fires">News Websites Are Dumpster Fires</h1>

<p>2019-05-29</p>

<p>Online news outlets are a dying breed and many users have decided to consume information elsewhere. Why? Because the news industry has become a cesspool of anti-consumer and blackhat practices that has eroded trust for the sake of money.</p>

<h2 id="what-news-sites-get-wrong">What news sites get wrong</h2>

<p>I could write up an entire essay about all the shady practices that <em>most</em> news sites are guilty of, but here are just a few top level issues:</p>

<ul>
<li>Clickbait headings with misleading information</li>
<li>Disabling the user from reading if ad-block is present</li>
<li>Tracking the user with 3rd party scripts</li>
<li>Taking massive performance hits (specifically on mobile due to huge JavaScript blocks)</li>
<li>Pop-up ads</li>
<li>Fixed headers or footers which leads to harder readability &#47; accidental element interactions</li>
</ul>

<h2 id="but-they-need-ad-revenue">But they need ad revenue!</h2>

<p>If your business is solely dependent on tracking scripts, tricking users with clickbait titles and using archaic ads - then you&#8217;re destined to fail regardless. These practices create an unsafe and unhealthy web for everyday users - not to mention most browsers have announced that future updates <a href="https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/content-blocking">will be blocking ads by default</a>. <em>News outlets need to adapt or die</em>.</p>

<h2 id="whats-the-solution">What&#8217;s the solution?</h2>

<p>I don&#8217;t have a <em>fix all</em> band-aid to replace current revenue streams for news websites. I&#8217;m sure someone much smarter than I can come up with better ideas, but just off the top of my head:</p>

<ul>
<li>Switch over to a monthly subscription plan (if no one pays for it maybe you weren&#8217;t as useful of a source as you thought)</li>
<li>Partner with brands to create sponsored articles (without ruining the user experience of course)</li>
<li>Place a larger emphasis on user donations or promotions</li>
</ul>

<h2 id="the-news-shouldnt-be-spam">The News Shouldn&#8217;t be Spam</h2>

<p>Most traffic flowing into news websites are there for one thing: <em>the content</em>. News outlets should not be spamming their main revenue supply (<strong>the users</strong>) or misleading people with false information.</p>

<p>If you&#8217;re a regular consumer of news and you happen to run across a platform that is guilty of any of these practices, shoot them an email explaining why you won&#8217;t be returning to their website (unless they change their ways). These anti-consumer practices will only stop when these organizations start losing money.</p>
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