Political website review: JohnMcCain.com

Last week I wrote a post comparing the logos of Democrats running for President. A good idea, but it hit me that maybe it would be better if I'd wax on about the websites of potential '08 candidates. Since, you know, I'm an expert.

Just kidding. I'm not. But since I've helped design three websites, and have loaded Dreamweaver onto my computer, I figure I can at least make some observations. Next week, who knows, I might write some drivel on quantum physics!

So for this week's website, I'm going to start with a candidate who has been running for President since he lost the South Carolina primary in 2000: John McCain. Full disclosure first: I'm a liberal. But when it comes to websites, I'm a non-partisan juggernaut. My one word description of John McCain's site: classy.

The site bills itself as "a departure from the traditional campaign website." I guess that really depends on what your definition of the traditional campaign website is; if your version of a traditional political website is what Rep. Chris Smith (R-NJ) used for his 2006 re-election camapaign (http://smith4nj.com/), then by all means, McCain.com is a revolution of splash. For the record, http://smith4nj.com/ may be the worst website ever.

But this post is about McCain.com. And immediately when you go to the site, the first thing that strikes you is the contrast in color. Classic black and white along the perimeter, with a full-color video menu dominating the middle of the index page. It's quite elegant, though two immediate thoughts come to mind:

1.) If McCain wants to look like he's not the oldest candidate running for president, the black & white motif might not be the best idea. Nothing says "I reached my prime during the days when the TV show Dobie Gillis originally ran" than a black and white website.

2.) McCain's logo reminds me of the McCain French fries logo. (See right.) Maybe it's the star.

Still, this being said, there's something nice about the uniqueness of the site, given the color-rich, splashiness of most political (and commercial) websites. I also like very much how you can just roll the cursor over a bottom menu of flash clips, to hear McCain wax on about how to get involved in the campaign, how to listen to video clips and read news releases of importance to "common sense conservatism," and how to become a part of McCainSpace, McCain's online networking concept. McCainSpace? Somewhere a punmaster is smirking.

The information architecture of the site is adequate, with menus on the top and bottom of the screen. A good use of rollovers is also incorporated, though I'm not crazy about the look of the rollovers, black text on a gray background.

As for the breakdown of the main pages, McCain.com's "For the Media" section is quite nice, and well organized. There are links for high resolution photos of John McCain (McCain seems to have excess skin on his face or his neck...I can't tell which), an "in the news" section (though this hasn't been updated since February 5, which seems like too long of a time delay for me), and a link for journalists to "join the media list."

McCainSpace is also somewhat impressive, allowing users to create their own website.

This page, however, has a photo that makes John McCain look like he has grim reaper hands. Or maybe that guy from "Tales from the Crypt." Bad choice. Nothing says "my body parts are deteriorating" like grim reaper hands.

On the "informing you" section of the site, there are some quite classy videos with titles like "Faith," "Government Reform," "Spending," and "Iraq," no doubt produced by someone who knows what they are doing. They really humanize McCain, and I think his position on increasing troops in Iraq is quite nuts. They also combat his reputation as a temper-driven politician, given how gentle he speaks.

The "Involving You" section and the "Action Center" do a fine job of using cool icons to access downloads, find people in your community interested in McCain, make a donation, etc. The blog section is just OK...it's organized nicely, and it has good links to YouTube, tips on how to engage the blogger community and post your own thoughts, and submit questions to the Senator. But for the life of me, I can't find the campaign's own blog, so I'm not sure they even have one. Secondly, they use the same photo of McCain twice on the same page, which creeps me out. Use two different photos, people. It shows initiative, and makes it so that it doesn't look like McCain's identical twin is doing a cameo.

This page has info on McCain's wife Cindy. It's a bit hidden within the site, and doesn't give much information on what (if any) role she'll play in the campaign. It's mostly biographical, and for some reason, there's a picture of a woman (presumably Cindy, but it doesn't really look like her), holding an infant, a floating child's head behind her. Weird.

McCain's bio page is much more detailed, but mostly about his military and Congressional service (no interesting details about who is favorite philosopher is, or perhaps what book he is currently reading, or his favorite musician, wedding song, etc.). There are half a dozen pictures, including this well-used photo (right), that makes McCain look hot. Mmm, sexy eyes. Undo that shirt a little more, Senator.

Overall, on a scale of 1 to 5 McCain French Fries, I give this site a 4. It should be well received by most folks, and it's fairly user-friendly. They make it easy for you to donate, too.

So while I think the man would be bad for this country, I think his campaign's website is good for the Internet.

Stay tuned next week for a look at neighboring New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson's site. Bye for now!