Design and content Like newspapers themselves, good design aids in delivering information. The viewer must feel comfortable. If a site design falters, it is because the viewer is confused or overwhelmed. So ease of navigation is a major consideration. All winners had effective navigational tools, particularly the Rocky Mountain News.
Many sites can appear ponderous and heavy.
White space online is just as valuable as it is in the newspaper. You can notice this in the clean layouts of the Post-Gazette and Santa Fe New Mexican. Content is king, however. Content draws people back to a site and keeps them there. Local news, of course, can be sticky content.