Week 10 Grids | Robinson

POLITICO covers political news. Their website uses a three-column grid system. The left and middle columns feature story headlines and decks, and interspersed photographs. The right column includes shortcuts and polls. The structure is very concrete and all elements keep in line with the grid. The containers group information together and guide the reader across the page. English-readers are inclined to read left to right, up and down. The cleanness of the POLITICO layout complies with this natural flow.

I believe there is positive tension in the layout. Although it is very text-based and full, the headlines are bold and blue to break up the monotony. The typeface carries throughout the page, enhancing the visual Gestalt. And the photographs serve as a substitute for white space. White space can ease tension and more clearly define the grids, but there isn't much of it on the Home page. The pictures that alternate columns satisfy that need.