DHS.gov prepares for a makeover
This webpage at DHS.gov describes current plans to relaunch the website in the early fall with a new look, and adjust its information architecture, making it so that “information is organized according to topic, NOT according to organizational structure, and that the choices are clear to visitors.” This document provides an outline for that new “information architecture.”
This new architecture is a slight improvement over the current site, but I think it’s still too hierarchical, in the manner of a static website circa 1998-2000, and not designed in a way that reflects the inherently networked nature of homeland security, linking content across the multiple content verticals. And I don’t see anything in the plan that indicates that DHS.gov will develop newer capabilities such as RSS feeds, live streaming video, podcasts, and online chats. (For example, see how the State Department’s website uses these tools.) Finally, the new info architecture diminishes the importance of critical infrastructure protection, which should be one of the most important areas for general outreach via the website. It would split CIP-related information into multiple categories, instead of providing a single portal where those responsible for the security of different types of infrastructure can find information.
