Introduced in 2017, text only web sites at CNN and NPR are going strong. “Text-only sites — which used to be more popular in the early days of the Internet, when networks were slower and bandwidth was at a premium – are incredibly useful, and not just during natural disasters. They load much faster, don’t contain any pop-ups or ads or autoplay videos, and help people with low bandwidth or limited Internet access. They’re also beneficial for people with visual impairments who use screen readers to navigate the Internet” said Poynter. In a current update to that article, CNN and NPR sites are still alive and up to the minute. CNN’s site is in plain text with an audio player for low-bandwidth usage available at the bottom of each page. NPR’s text only site also integrates NPR broadcasts into its articles.
Menu