This mobile site is meant to provide serious information in a less serious format. By presenting purposefully child-like sketches, this site lowers the stress of consuming vast quantities of loaded photographs or texts. The combination of almost info-graphic-like drawings with short paragraphs will make it a site that both the literate and semi-literate can find useful and enjoyable.
Popular sites and apps travel quickly if they are funny, social, informative, or enjoyable. This app can be all those attributes. Literate users will find this app desirable along with other news outlets because of its humor and compactness. By appealing to the educated users, who are primarily the avid sharers and discoverers, this app can then be widely circulated to those who may be less able or inclined to search for different news sources.
The interface is very simple. The main homepage does not feature too many complicated buttons or options, jumping straight into the news of the day. My example content regards U.S. news, but any world news could be illustrated in this format. Each title is accompanied by a fun and easy illustration that depicts the story. The drop down bar in the upper right hand corner would allow users to see the full articles with short text paragraphs accompanied by pictures like this example story, or pages with just illustrations for each story for those who don’t want any text.
Upon clicking on the specific story, users will be led to the story page. This page features simple illustrations for every short paragraph, which will not slow down any older or less powerful devices. There are no buttons to press and the viewer can scroll straight through. Illustrated pictures are more effective than photographs because they allow for explanations, symbols, and info-graphic-like additions; these illustrations can simultaneously depict an event, statistic, mood, reception, and problem.
This type of site will be cheap to produce since one would not have to pay for photo rights, as with other sites that must either hire photographers or pay for the rights to use other photographers’ photos. The illustrators only need minimum abilities since the entire premise of the artistic style is simplicity.
Users will stay active with this app and site because they can get through stories so quickly. There are multiple incentives to check the app, including how simple it is to understand and use, and the fact that it is both fun and informative.
