At the same moment that President Obama took the oath of office last week, the White House website got a facelift. The new White House website features a blog, information about U.S. History, a briefing room, and other dynamic and static features.
We know from our extensive research in the arts that the next generation is most engaged when they can Learn, Connect, and/or have a Multi-Sensing experience. Although the White House is not an arts or cultural institution, it faces similar challenges: reintroducing a new generation to a historically important institution that some next-geners feel is staid and inaccessible.
Since the web is how the next gen sees the world, we ask, “How does the White House’s new website score in the dimensions of Learning, Sensing and Connecting?” (Turn the mirror on yourself, and ask “How would OUR site score in these dimensions?”)
Learning: When you think about the White House, you probably think about the President and the Oval Office. Whitehouse.gov tells you about these things and more: it offers (mostly static) information about the White House, where the Vice President lives, the legislative branches, and a gob about President Obama’s priorities. If you get tired from reading all that text, it also offer a slide show of all 44 Presidents, including portraits and nonpartisan bios that make for pretty interesting reading. If you want to win White House jeopardy, Whitehouse.gov is a good place to start.
Learning Score: Three stars (out of possible four).
Connecting: As we learned at last week’s brain dump with Sarah Intellagirl Robbins, technology that allows you to “connect” with your patrons, visitors, and clients allows them to share their voice with you and with each other. An example of “Connect” technology is a blog (like the one you’re reading now) where readers can post comments. Whitehouse.gov has a mixed score in the “Connecting” index. Although the site offers a blog, readers can’t post comments. On the “Contact Us” page, it says, “President Obama is committed to creating the most open and accessible administration in American history.” Wonderful! But you can only send a one-way, 500-character message (about 3 text messages in length) to the White House website. There’s no telling if these messages are ever read, or if others are asking the same question. Finally, visitors can choose to get updates from the White House by offering their email address and zip code. We like the ease of use and accessibility of all these factors, and the intention to connect is noteworthy. But the site feels dry and very one-way in its capacity to actually feel connected to the White House or to other visitors of the site. True “Connecting” is multi-directional, and on these accounts, Whitehouse.gov doesn’t make the grade.
Connecting Score: Two Stars.
Multi-Sensing: Websites that want to offer a multi-sensory experience are generally limited to sight, sound, and sometimes emotion (usually with the combination of powerful music and images). Like the Connecting index above, Whitehouse.gov has good intentions, and a shallow offering. The most dynamic multi-sensory feature is President Obama’s weekly Saturday morning webcast. He’s looking right at us, talking about “our” America. The most quirky multi-sensory experience is a slideshow on Presidential Pets.
Multi-sensory Score: Two stars.
Overhauling a 19th century institution for a new generation is a large task. The White House website gets the tone right. Over time, they may round out the content, and offer greater Connecting and Multi-sensory offerings. And even if they don’t, there’s enough celebrity status wrapped up in the Obama administration that thousands of websites will fill the void and offer opportunities to Connect to the White House, e.g. Meet-ups, and have a more well-rounded multi-sensory experience (YouTube.)
