Local Voices

Multidimensional News Reading Feature for VG

Multidimensional News Reading Feature for VG

Multidimensional News Reading Feature for VG

At a glance

Local Voices" is a new feature in the VG news app that promotes bottom-up interaction between readers and media while ensuring media authority. It covers social aspects beyond the media's reach, encouraging the public to collectively create a comprehensive picture of the events, offering a new multi-dimensional perspective.

Timeline

April to June 2023 (7weeks)

context

Solo student project at AHO during Erasmus

client

– VG (leading Norwegian media company)

My Roles & Responsibilities

– User research
– Problem definition
– Prototyping and testing
– Communication with VG

/Who is VG, and what are their challenges?

“We want to contribute to a functioning democracy by bridging the gap between what people know and what they need to know about society.”

VG is the largest Norwegian newspaper averaging 2.4 million unique daily visitors. However, the daily users aged 15-24 sharply declined from 104,327 in January 2022 to 52,655 in December. As a traditional news platform, it faces the challenge of competing for young users' time due to the popularity of social media and interactive technologies.

VG is the Norwegian newspaper with the highest number of readers, averaging 2.4 million unique daily visitors. However, the daily users in the 15-24 age group on the front page sharply declined from 104,327 people in January 2022 to 52,655 people in December. As a traditional news platform, it faces the challenge of competing for young users' time due to the popularity of Social Media and Interactive Technologies

VG is the Norwegian newspaper with the highest number of readers, averaging 2.4 million unique daily visitors. However, the daily users in the 15-24 age group on the front page sharply declined from 104,327 people in January 2022 to 52,655 people in December. As a traditional news platform, it faces the challenge of competing for young users' time due to the popularity of Social Media and Interactive Technologies

01 ·
understanding the problem

/Causes behind the problem

Always look at what’s behind and beyond what meets the eye.

During my desk research and discussions with the UX team at VG, I asked clarifying questions and probed for additional information to decompose the apparent problem. This approach of breaking down the problem into smaller components was instrumental in pinpointing the root cause.

/Scope down

What content requires both high authority and strong potential for public opinion and engagement?

In order to achieve a more effective and widely applicable final solution, I'll focus my research on opportunities within the ongoing media coverage (authority) and public interest (popularity, engagement) surrounding the strike news.

In order to achieve a more effective and widely applicable final solution, I'll focus my research on opportunities within the ongoing media coverage (authority) and public interest (popularity, engagement) surrounding the strike news."

/understanding news in depth

How is the strike event reported, and what is the media's role in it?

After reading several articles about the news coverage process, I synthesized and mapped out the potential journey from various sources.

/Putting the research to the real context

VG's coverage of the LO-NHO Wage Dispute Strike serves as an example consistent with my research findings on the reporting process.

From VG's recent reports, I have identified three sets of news with relatively comprehensive and lengthy coverage. Interestingly, I found that they share a highly similar overall structure, and the four articles about the wage dispute strike between LO and NHO align completely with my research findings.

/understanding young audiences' experience

Young users' experience during a real-life strike event.

To explore young users' emotional journey and their desire to express themselves when reading news about strikes, I interviewed three students from Norway, India, and China. I guided them through a fictional strike scenario and recorded fluctuations in two factors, as shown in the graph below.

Emotional Valley

Emotional Valley

Users typically experience strong negative emotions during the initial stages of an event. When they learn about an upcoming strike, they often express complaints and frustration.

Users typically experience strong negative emotions during the initial stages of an event. When they learn about an upcoming strike, they often express complaints and frustration.

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Expression peak

Expression peak

During the initial outbreak of the event, the interviewees' desire to express themselves is also at its peak, with some expressing confusion and others sharing their sufferings.

During the initial outbreak of the event, the interviewees' desire to express themselves is also at its peak, with some expressing confusion and others sharing their sufferings.

To narrow down the research scope, I'll conduct in-depth user research during early news reporting when emotions are low and the desire to express is high.

/Qualitative research

Understanding young users' behaviors better when breaking news occurs.

I spoke with 4 different individuals aged between 18-25 to understand when young users are more willing to speak out during emergencies and when they prefer to act as observers, sharing or commenting on these interactions.

Consequently, I synthesized insights from the perspectives of both contributors and onlookers.

➡️ Contributor' perspective

➡️ Contributor' perspective

➡️ Contributor' perspective

When are they more willing to interact?

Uncover some hidden truths beyond the media's gaze.

Upgrade, earn badges, and incentives for personal influence.

Having openness to listen and receiving responses.

After experiencing the events described in the news.

➡️ Onlookers’ perspective

➡️ Onlookers’ perspective

➡️ Onlookers’ perspective

When are they more willing to view or diffuse these content?

Personal stories and experiences, resonating with users.

The coverage of news events from multiple dimensions.

Make users feel they are well-informed and knowledgeable.

Users feel relevant and included in how the issues affect them.

The good news is that young users are not unwilling to speak out, but they lack a supportive environment and may find leaving comments unproductive and unresponsive.

02 ·
Ideation

/How might we

How might we create a conducive environment for reader interaction with the news platform, in order to enhance engagement among young users?

Skip to Final Work

Skip to Final Work

Skip to Final Work

/Prioritization

I had 4 weeks left and needed to re-prioritize my ideas based on their impact and effort.

With a shorter time scope, I decided to focus on ideas that requires low effort but high impact. And I clustered them into 3 categories which pave the way for further design outcomes.

If you are interested in the 12 insights

If you are interested in the 12 insights

If you are interested in the 12 insights

/Wireframe

Transforming ideation into tangible representations for future testing.

Some trial and error below.

Post Local Voices

Users can share their real-life experiences from the scene at any time while reading the news to provide a multi-dimensional perspective on the facts.

Uncover The Fact

Social Iteraction Loop

03 ·
test

/stakeholder alignment

Keeping my collaborators updated about my early ideas.

Constantly knowing whether my ideas align with the collaborator's desirability is another core aspect of this project because I want to design not only what I think users need but also ensure it aligns with the company's brand identity and business value. These considerations will serve as the basis for my later iterations.

/keep on track

Recognizing the potential for subjectivity and polarization in my solution, I started contemplating how to standardize the objectivity and fairness of speech.

As I helped readers express opinions and emotions, I realized their voices shouldn't challenge authority. If the news media loses credibility, it could lead to a greater disaster. Finding the dynamic balance between authority and interactivity is crucial.

/Design principles

Always keeping authoritative principles in mind.

The principles help create an objective, decentralized community that aligns with VG's demands for enterprise reliability.

/Iterations based on the feedback

4 rounds of moderated tests informed iterations that helped focus on various dimensions from micro-interactions to hierarchical structure.

I devised several tasks for the participants and observed their behavior patterns, mental models and ability to complete their goals. Through multiple rounds of testing, the final design was slowly formed with a lower cognitive load and higher accessibility.

04 ·
final design

Social objects

Social objects

  • In the midst of hurriedly hoarding, I suddenly lost my footing, leading to a sharp fracture in my leg. Chaos ensued as the cart I pushed toppled.

  • In this food strike, hunger is my constant companion. Every moment feels like a fight, but my determination holds strong.

  • The weight of unaddressed grievances still hangs heavy in the air, and a resolution feels distant. As the days stretch on, uncertainty lingers.

  • Each day, the rising prices strip away a bit of my hope and stability. It's reached a point where I can no longer tolerate.

  • Amid hunger, frustration, and uncertainty, emotions surge. This challenging day fuels my determination for change.

  • I bought the eggs in Sweden. As I stare at them now, it's a bittersweet reminder of how far I've come since those times of abundance.

  • Amid the food strike, its closed doors stand as a stark reminder of how swiftly the familiar can transform in times of collective action.

  • Once a daily indulgence, they've now become a luxury that I can hardly afford amidst the rising costs.

  • In the midst of hurriedly hoarding, I suddenly lost my footing, leading to a sharp fracture in my leg. Chaos ensued as the cart I pushed toppled.

  • In this food strike, hunger is my constant companion. Every moment feels like a fight, but my determination holds strong.

  • The weight of unaddressed grievances still hangs heavy in the air, and a resolution feels distant. As the days stretch on, uncertainty lingers.

  • Each day, the rising prices strip away a bit of my hope and stability. It's reached a point where I can no longer tolerate.

  • Amid hunger, frustration, and uncertainty, emotions surge. This challenging day fuels my determination for change.

  • I bought the eggs in Sweden. As I stare at them now, it's a bittersweet reminder of how far I've come since those times of abundance.

  • Amid the food strike, its closed doors stand as a stark reminder of how swiftly the familiar can transform in times of collective action.

  • Once a daily indulgence, they've now become a luxury that I can hardly afford amidst the rising costs.

  • In the midst of hurriedly hoarding, I suddenly lost my footing, leading to a sharp fracture in my leg. Chaos ensued as the cart I pushed toppled.

  • In this food strike, hunger is my constant companion. Every moment feels like a fight, but my determination holds strong.

  • The weight of unaddressed grievances still hangs heavy in the air, and a resolution feels distant. As the days stretch on, uncertainty lingers.

  • Each day, the rising prices strip away a bit of my hope and stability. It's reached a point where I can no longer tolerate.

  • Amid hunger, frustration, and uncertainty, emotions surge. This challenging day fuels my determination for change.

  • I bought the eggs in Sweden. As I stare at them now, it's a bittersweet reminder of how far I've come since those times of abundance.

  • Amid the food strike, its closed doors stand as a stark reminder of how swiftly the familiar can transform in times of collective action.

  • Once a daily indulgence, they've now become a luxury that I can hardly afford amidst the rising costs.

/reflection

What I have learned.

1

1

Don't engage in armchair strategy

At the beginning, I was deep into the rabbit hole of a research-heavy project. This led me to spend a lot of time conducting literature reviews on the relationship between media and politics, and media polarization. However, I later realized that it is more important to further validate and test the MVP with our users to obtain more valuable and contextual insights.

2

2

Make informed design decision

Although this project differentiated from the traditional UX design process, and I constantly had to make trade-offs between interaction and reliability, these challenges enabled each choice to be backed by a reason. I also learned how to better communicate my design decisions to myself even future recruiter.

3

3

Balance client needs with innovation

While prioritizing client needs is important, maintaining a balance by questioning them is beneficial too. Initially, my collaborator had concerns about enhancing reader interaction, fearing it might impact our media platform's reliability. However, the thoughtful integration of the 'local voices' feature achieved a harmonious balance, easing their concerns. This experience highlighted the importance of finding a sweet spot between client demands and innovative strategies.

Let’s make great products

Let’s make great products

Let’s make great products