NYT’s New Look, Google Reader’s Death, Matchmaking for Journalists

The Strategist picks the day’s most interesting stories for the content aficionados who love the backstory and reading between the lines. Here are the gems you need to kickstart your Thursday.

Inside the New York Times’ Web Redesign (The Verge)
It’s hard to believe that the NYT’s last redesign was in 2006 (when smartphones barely existed).

Earlier this week, the company announced that it will be overhauling its web presence across platforms with changes to be released this fall. Currently, previews are invite-only, but the Verge managed to get a sneak peak.

In efforts to improve user experience, pagination is going to go — all articles will be on one single page. There is also a push to make user experience between app and web platforms more continuous.

Google Reader’s Death Is Proof that RSS Always Suffered from a Lack of Consumer Appeal (TechCrunch)
If you haven’t heard, Google Reader will be shutting down later this week. Writer Drew Olanoff makes the bold claim that RSS is geek-only technology. Sure, it was functional in its ability to streamline all of your reading material into one place.

But was it sexy? The truth is that online media is just as much entertainment-driven as it is efficient and functional. Aesthetics count — people aren’t machines. RSS might be great technology for data communication, but it may fall short in connecting with human eyes.

Media Spot Me Launches to Connect Experts with Journalists Looking for Sources (BetaKit)
Thanks to technology, the distance between journalists and their sources is getting shorter. Media Spot Me is a new platform to help give journalists a quick way to research and access experts in specific fields.

It’s always a struggle to connect with the right people, and this company is leveraging social networking technology to solve that pain point.