The Borowitz Report

Limited access to content, as well as bland presentation and politically focused content may keep this satire site more for parents than kids. The Borowitz Report doesn’t have many bells and whistles; the design couldn't be simpler – it’s literally a list of blog posts. The site is a section of the New Yorker’s website, and there’s plenty of content in the magazine’s other sections, but the Borowitz Report itself offers little else than satirical posts and the ability to sign up for the site’s RSS feed or follow it on Twitter. The reading material is funny, and it’s not necessarily inappropriate for kids -- a few items that mention things that are adult-oriented, such a public figure supposedly having a sex tape, but the description is nothing more salacious than kids would read in the paper.

The blog content’s biggest challenge for reaching younger readers is its design. The content isn't presented in a way that’s particularly interactive -- don’t expect games, sounds, or lots of visuals; standard photos accompany most posts. There’s also no topic list or way to search through posts -- users can only click through the blog’s older entries, one page at a time. General tags, like “satire,” that are featured at the bottom of each post will pull up a mishmash of cartoons, essays, and other items from various sections on The New Yorker site, which makes it difficult to find Borowitz Report posts on a specific topic. Adding more accessible navigation would provide a better experience. The list-like design and lack of engagement-based features -- coupled with the fact you can only click on six posts before being told you've reached your limit of free articles for the month and need to pay $12 to subscribe to The New Yorker to access more -- may prevent the site from grabbing or holding younger site visitors' interest. That is, unless they're major political junkies, because the blog's content is primarily politically minded. Even if that's the case, parents may want to make sure they fully understand the real-world news items in the blog are presented in a sarcastic way -- sometimes featuring made up details -- so kids don't get the humorous news confused with real reporting.