First off, let me say that you are all
excellent writers. Your combination of rationality, rhetoric and passion makes you some of the most engaging and thought-provoking writers on the net today. Your time and effort are a gift to us all, and I am grateful.
However, I've noticed a trend over the past few months. With the exception of Cheers and Jeers, you guys hardly ever seem to use the "Extended Copy" feature any more (aka -- "Below the fold," "After the jump," "There's moreville"). Combined with narrow margins -- and very long entries, the result is making Daily Kos almost unreadable (in my opinion).
Why I think this is important and not just nit-picking below the fold...
First off, IMO, it dilutes your message. I've noticed that many of the front page articles put the most gripping observations in the fourth, fifth... tenth paragraphs. I know you have lots of very good points to make, and if you want to preach to the choir (and a fine choir it is) of readers who hang on your every word... fine. But if you want to grab the much larger audience of casual readers:
you need to put the money shot "climactic payoff" in the first 100 words. That's what our attention span dictates. Put the rest below the fold.
Second, it derails trains of thought. Face it, lots and lots of people aren't willing to scroll to the bottom of the page. When a 75 line front page entry is created, it severely limits the number of topics that can be given true front page attention at any one time. The flow of the diary swings violently from topic to topic, as only one or two items can share a reasonable amount of page space at the same time. This gives the impression to outsiders that we are both pedantic, and have a poor attention span. Didn't think that was a possible combination, but it is.
Third, in my opinion, the number and quality of comments per front-page diary has declined significantly of late. There's really only enough time for people to post clever mojo-grabbing quips before the diary is supplanted by the next megalithic entry. There's no incentive to spend time researching and writing a substantial comment in response to a diary. By the time a well-researched and written comment is posted, the original diary has probably fallen 300 lines down the page.
So, I'd like to make the request that front pagers try to follow the guidelines that the rest of us have to follow:
If your diary entry is longer than three paragraphs, use the extended entry box. Be considerate and don't clutter up the Diaries home page with epic entries.
Not only is it more considerate to your fellow FP'ers, I think it would make DKos even more powerful in reaching a wider audience. Thanks for your consideration.