Joshua Topolsky Said to Be Leaving Bloomberg (nytimes.com)
almost 7 years ago from Teodorik Mensl
almost 7 years ago from Teodorik Mensl
In another statement, Mr. Smith said that Mr. Topolsky had set traffic records, doubled traffic from social media and spurred double-digit revenue growth. Mr. Micklethwait called Mr. Topolsky “one of the most creative digital journalists that I have met.
Seems strange not to trust someone who has had such a positive impact on the company. It seems Mr. Boomberg may not have a full understanding of design's purpose. I know the website could use improvement, but I don't think Joshua had all of the time he needed to fulfill his vision.
What is the source of that statement?
From the NYT article ^
Are we looking at the same article?
Via: http://joshuatopolsky.com/post/123817628197/hello-again
"Let this sink in a bit: we launched two completely new (award-winning, beautiful, inventive) websites and founded our first regional site (hi Europe!); hit new traffic records (like surpassing the WSJ for the first time); become the leader in business digital video (we grew audiences nearly 350% YoY); nearly doubled our social traffic (all time highs in every metric, a 358% increase in Facebook traffic YoY); PLUS we saw double digit revenue growth in digital.
But more important than revenue or numbers, the editorial work I had a chance to be a part of was some of the strongest and most interesting stuff anyone anywhere has been doing. Things like Paul Ford’s outrageously great What is Code, data viz storytelling like This Is How Fast America Changes Its Mind and our 2015 Weed Index, or our 80’s-drenched oral history of junk bond kings, a feature about mutant big game hunting in South Africa, the tale of a sad drill in Seattle, or, you know, this insane Paul Krugman thing. To say nothing of the killer photo essays we did for Pursuits, or the fantastic new video our team has been creating. The list goes on and on. We’ve been making a lot of cool shit."
Just because you are getting more clicks, doesn't mean the quality has improved.
Clearly Bloomberg (the man) cares more about netting a specific audience than just increasing 'engagement' or clicks on the site.
I certainly enjoyed what Topolsky did, but it's understandable that Bloomberg might be concerned about how the changes effected the publications brand/perception.
Not sure about that... have seen their magazine covers?
It's interesting because, while I wasn't a previous heavy Bloomberg reader, I found their new content to be on point.
It's a shame they had to really go off the deep end in regards to the visual design of the site. I'm all for making things more intriguing and different but you have to know your audience.
off the deep end is the perfect way to put this.
Could someone explain to me the joke with that 404 page?
Same, I loved their articles like Big Bertha or the big code breakdown.
I was also a big reader of The Verge when he was on it. Lately the quality of articles has really dipped. I hope the same doesn't happen when he leaves Bloomberg.
I think the audience is the big thing. Michael Bloomberg is the audience. If he didn't like it, then most of their readers wouldn't either.
It is exciting to wonder where he will go next.
Twitter CEO.
I don't like how every time Bloomberg comes up on DN someone makes a comment about how they've "gone off the deep end" or something along those lines.
It's a shame that their designers are really innovating in digital and for the most part the DN community doesn't seem to support it because it doesn't fall under the "safe" visual language that seems to get upvoted the most here.
Couldn't agree more.
So innovative is using Helvetica, neon colors, poor legibility within type headlines, random pixel art gifs, borders on text, and thick underlines?
I'm failing to make the connection there.
Innovative to me is pushing the envelope of the reading experience, perhaps incorporating more interactive elements, using video in an interesting way, making the content more contextual, etc.
You are evaluating innovation each individual component that comprises it, rather than what the sum of all those elements becomes.
I think that that's narrow thinking.
Innovative to me is pushing the envelope of the reading experience, perhaps incorporating more interactive elements, using video in an interesting way, making the content more contextual, etc.
They are also doing all of this ^ Doesn't seem like you've given Bloomberg a fair chance because you disagree with their aesthetic direction.
Such a shame - felt like they hired him away from The Verge in order to lead and rejuvenate the Bloomberg site/redesign. He did just that, really pushing it to the limits - with rumors of Bloomberg himself getting way more hands on, that doesn't bode well for them overall.
(Of course, who knows how the new site performed against goals and actual metrics and all. But it seemed to have received TONS more press lately with their big features.)
I think you're onto something when bringing up metrics/goals. In the end, for a site like that, numbers are king. You can generate all the buzz in the world with great design, but great design alone isn't enough. You need great content... and as much as it pains me to know this... there are a lot of times where what we consider amazing design doesn't really resonate with the audience they need it to. Some time, it simply doesn't pay the bills.
I think as a whole, this is tough pain-point for the online news industry. You need ad revenue, you need active users, and you need great content... and a lot of times each of those things demands vey unique - and often opposing - solutions.
I think you're right to a certain extent.
I personally thought the Bloomberg design was so bad that it had to be some type of performance art piece or philosophical statement about contemporary economics...
That being said...I think you can have exceptional design and attract that older "mba-ish" type audience. A great example is the NYT. They've created some stunningly well designed products in the past few years and they've seen more success because of it.
The Bloomberg design was more like you gave a hipster the keys to the castle and they ended up painting the walls neon.
Has the NYT seen more success because of it? Certainly buzz (much like the Bloomberg articles), but I read somewhere that they were spending boatloads of money on some of those longform over-designed articles they were posting - money that has to come from somewhere (and I doubt the NYT coffers are still that full after all these years).
I do wonder what the actual metrics are on things like the NYT and Wapo and other "big" news sites of their ilk (print turning digital, primarily).
I've been reading more of Bloomberg since the redesign. And their daily emails — it's the only newsletter I've opted-in to and continue to enjoy.
Haha... his Twitter post https://twitter.com/joshuatopolsky/status/619542326797402113
How is this designer news?
Quoting from the article:
Mr. Topolsky, a founder of the tech and culture website The Verge, oversaw the recent redesign of Bloomberg’s business website.
ah ok. Thanks.
This is super unfortunate if true. Sounds like Michael Bloomberg is getting hands-on, which I can't imagine Josh would enjoy.
Josh has made a statement on his departure.
Big deal for every media company outside … I felt like the Bloomberg environment is the perfect place for Joshua. Very bad for both parties.
Clearly, he's leaving to focus on his music career as frontman of the band Big Data.
You joke, but Topolsky actually was/is a musician. He and his brother Eric Emm, who is one half of the band Tanlines, ran a moderately successful production company in the mid 2000's.
If you can find that picture of Josh rummaging through a crate of vinyls as a teen I will give you a high five
You are the best! Thank you!
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