Finding links to Cavalier Daily articles on Facebook is never a challenging task. Students tend to share articles, excitedly promoting a specific topic or event. These articles spark conversation and provide important information to the community at large. However, once an individual reads the article in question, are they going to continue perusing the website or quickly head back to a social media platform? The short answer is community members are unlikely to spend much time on the outdated website.
The Cavalier Daily’s website is difficult to navigate and does not have an intuitive user-friendly interface. Clicking through the website reveals some concerning patterns. The “Grounds” tab on the site pulls up articles from over a year ago. These articles are mainly focused on the Rotunda renovation, which has been completed for several months now. The “Honor Committee” tab shows even older articles, all of them from the fall of 2013. Attempting to use the search bar does not yield recent, or even seemingly organized results. When you enter “Hazing” into the search bar, the first article to come up is from 2013, in spite of the fact that The Cavalier Daily published an article in October of this year that covered a football-hazing lawsuit. Interested parties may use online search engines to find particular Cavalier Daily articles they are looking for, but it should not be necessary for them to do so.
In addition to these unhelpful search and navigational functions, the website does not suggest related articles to the reader at the end of a piece. Readers may be more inclined to stay on the website and read articles not shared by friends if the site were easier to use. Reading articles on a phone or tablet yields similarly frustrating and inaccessible results. More effectively engaging with readers, and making it simpler for community members to find articles should be a priority for The Cavalier Daily.
In the age of digital media and the dying newspaper, it is vitally important that The Cavalier Daily acknowledges readers’ preference for online articles. This is not to suggest that print is no longer valuable, but rather to impress upon The Cavalier Daily as an organization that readership may rise with an improved online platform. Increasing accessibility for online readers needs to be a pressing concern for the student-run newspaper. Busy students and community members deserve a website that is simple, clean and allows them to effectively search for pieces.
Designing a website with clearly organized search results and current articles will benefit readers and The Cavalier Daily as an institution. A responsive platform that provides a different reader experience on a computer, cell phone or tablet would further entice students to read and share articles. The Cavalier Daily has been the student newspaper of the University since 1890. However, it is time to bring this newspaper into the modern age and provide a high quality online media experience for all Cavalier Daily readers.
Jacquelyn Katuin is the Public Editor for The Cavalier Daily. She can be reached at publiceditor@cavalierdaily.com or on Twitter at @CDPublicEditor.
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