Overview
Gestalt is a news aggregator app that exposes users to multiple sides of a story from a range of credible sources. Designed for iOS, the app encourages newsreaders to be critical of the bias in the media they consume while confronting their own.
It is the capstone project I developed over the course of BrainStation’s 10 week full time UX Design diploma program, between November 2020 and January 2021.
Role
Product Designer
Tools
Figma, Sketch, InVision, Photoshop, Procreate
Problem Space
I started the project November 2020, during the peak of the US election. This period of time felt heavy with partisan politics, with protests supporting or opposing movements such as Black Lives Matter, Defund the Police, Climate Strike, Indigenous Land Rights, and Anti-Lockdown. I wanted to address how this level of polarization can be caused by social media
Social media algorithms have been so effective in catering to users’ existing beliefs that they have created digital echo chambers and filter bubbles in which user are never exposed to content that challenges those beliefs. This online feedback loop has resulted in widespread misinformation, heightened social and political polarization, and insulated communities.
Design Challenge
Seeing this rise of this intellectual state of isolation and the divisiveness over the past year lead me to propose the question:
How might we encourage open-mindedness and critical thinking among young politically-minded newsreaders in order to reduce the negative impacts of online echo chambers and filter bubbles?
Research Insights
Taking a broader look at the current newsreader's experience, I found that:
52% of Canadians, and more specifically, about 73% of Millennials get their news through social media (such as Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. And 69% of Canadians believe that the average person in the country lives in their own “bubble” on the internet.
Interview Insights
During 4 remotely conducted interviews with Millennials who primarily get their news via social media, I asked them about their news reading habits and their awareness of their own biases and found these 3 key insights:
‣ A source’s perceived reputation greatly impacts the user’s trust in an article
‣ Users generally want to understand or recognize the value of seeing all sides of a story
‣ Because it can be emotionally difficult to read opposing perspectives, user are less likely to seek them out.
Persona
Through my conversations, I was able to identify common goals, motivations, behaviours, and pain points in the ways my participants consumed news. I used these to develop a persona - Emily - that would help me empathize with my target user and guide my design decisions.
Features + Sketches
Considering Emily’s current news reading experience, there is an opportunity to alleviate pain points and satisfy needs by designing a new way to read the news:
Curating a range of trusted, credible sources
Grouping together articles that cover topics
Measure and track the user’s news consumption biases
Eliminate preconceived bias by revealing source only after reading the article
Inspired by components, patterns, and how information is categorized and laid out in existing news aggregator apps, as well as food delivery apps, I began sketching out different ways to build these new ideas up on them.
Wireframes + User Testing
I then translated those sketches into wireframes and mid-fi prototypes. With each iteration, I applied changes based on feedback from two rounds of user testing, such as how things are laid out or worded for better clarity
I refined the article rating system — first trying a Tinder-style mechanic, swiping right/left to like/dislike, but most testers didn’t find it intuitive. I ultimately opted for a floating action button at the bottom of the screen, somewhat like Medium’s.
I improved the onboarding stages to help orient new users, rearranged components and reworded microcopy for better usability and clarity, and made additions to the Profile screen based on user suggestions of further encouraging critical thinking.
Design System
I wanted to evoke print media, so I drew inspiration from news papers, zines — platforms that have been used to express political opinions — and I used typefaces that have been historically used in print. I also drew from trendy layout designs that would appeal to the target audience of Millennials. And with a commitment to fostering critical, independent thinking among users, the primary colours had to be minimally associated with political standings.
With this visual identity in mind, I developed a design system as a foundation for building the next hi-fidelity version upon, and ensuring consistency for any future iterations.
Hi-Fi + Prototype
Injecting the visual identity into the best iteration of my wireframes, I created the final hi-fidelity prototype.
Marketing Website
Because the app offers a new kind of news reading experience, it is important to have an effective marketing site to get users onboard. These are the screens of both the desktop and mobile views of the responsive website.
Web App Version
Based on my interviews, I had learned that while users mostly got their news on their phones, they also occasionally read the news on their desktop computers. Considering multi-platform design, creating a web app version would be most appropriate.
