The Ethical Problem

Following the election, there was quite a bit of confusion surrounding density of Republican votes coming out of middle America, the Southwest, etc.

Our goal with this resource is to minimize that confusion by giving news consumers a consciousness of their fellow readers by showing where they are in that exact moment.

Additionally, web analytics are fascinating and have the potential to contribute more to the user experience than online publications may suspect.

Sample graphics showing information in a visually engaging way.

Importance

We both believe that it would not only be helpful for news consumers to be more mindful of the global community while consuming news, but necessary as well.

Regardless of where there is more or less news, being reminded of other readers can enrich the “user experience” (or, reader experience), promote critical thinking, and feed the dialogue surrounding the question:

Where did all of these Trump votes come from?

...which gained momentum after the election. It’s not necessarily appealing to only liberal readers, either — the context it provides has the potential to insight the same dialogue from more conservative readers as well.

The Solution (Prediction)

Although analytics are traditionally private to newsroom tech teams, we actually believe them to be missing information for readers.

The mobile version of Space+Time features a screen overlay of several layers of navigable information.

Space+Time shows the number of readers reading that *same article* at that *same time* in a random assortment of cities. The information is presented in pop-ups, which we’ve prototyped and put to the test.

It provides context for readers through a simple reminder of the global community, which is also a great way of staying current.

The desktop version of the site is similar to the mobile design and can be easily exited to return to the article.

Further, Americans are not good readers. "Staying current" has become easier said than done, largely due to the ubiquity of social media. A general idea of who else is reading adds the communal element that digital media users so crave. That said, Space+Time has the potential to add intrigue to user experience, which could then appeal to an online publication's marketing sector.

Our design is set within U.S. parameters. However — having it span globally would be an upgrade that would occur in the next steps of the project. Making Space+Time global would help U.S. readers understand which U.S. news genres appeal most to foreign readers, and visa versa. This could then add another level of nuance to the aforementioned dialogue.

In the pursuit of such a feature, it’s important to craft it in a way that doesn't promote misuse. We are welcoming any feedback regarding the structure and purpose of Space+Time, as there is potential for presumptions to be made about a place in which there is dense readership that do not coincide with the problem we are aiming to solve. Another piece of the puzzle that would require further strategy is the relevance of the feature to certain articles over others. For example, knowing where updates on the Stormy Daniels case are being read would be far more informative than knowing where a lifestyle listicle is being read. Though working around these “bugs” is certainly reasonable, it would require a larger team.