It’s time we shone a light on one of our favorite clients: OpenMedia. OpenMedia is a community-driven civic engagement platform that educates, engages, and empowers Internet users about digital rights. As the battle for open, affordable, and surveillance-free Internet wages on, OpenMedia shines as a beacon of (dare-we-say) sanity for those whose concerns are not being represented by large corporate lobbies and political factions.
Our partnership with OpenMedia began in the spring of 2020 with a large and significant milestone: the migration of their content management system from Drupal (version 7) to ExpressionEngine 6. We continue to keep OpenMedia’s site and tools up to date, ensuring they remain empowered with the tools needed to fight the good fight.
At the core of OpenMedia’s mission are three pillars, the first of which is Access: to create an Internet that is inclusive and accessible to all. For many in OpenMedia’s community, improving the price and speed of their local Internet services is how they think about an accessible web; but making sure the web services they find once they’re well connected are accessible to their physical needs is equally important. To serve this goal, in 2021, Hop Studios conducted a thorough accessibility audit of OpenMedia’s website.
On the web, accessibility is the practice of designing and coding a website to support visitors who experience physical disabilities like reduced vision or low motor control, as well as those whose online experience is limited by bandwidth or other equipment issues. Our audit identified key areas for improvement, and we implemented fixes that improved the overall accessibility of the site from the homepage to individual article pages.
In the spring of 2022, wanting to better engage site visitors with the OpenMedia mission and campaigns, OpenMedia took a step back and looked to Hop Studios to refresh its homepage. Hop Studios worked hand-in-glove with OpenMedia’s fundraising and outreach teams to ensure all audiences were considered, as well as the capabilities and rhythm of the internal team.
We ensured that the redesigned homepage of course met accessibility standards, and also that it provided a more engaging and informative experience for visitors without compromise across platforms and devices.
Our ongoing collaboration with OpenMedia is an opportunity for us to express our shared commitment to a digital landscape that champions openness, affordability, and privacy. Hop Studios stands at the ready for OpenMedia, offering technical expertise and innovative solutions to bolster OpenMedia’s mission and vision. [ed: Hop Studios’ President Travis Smith is on the OpenMedia board.]
Together, we will continue to drive positive change in the online world, one successful campaign at a time.
We hope you, too, will consider getting involved in one of OpenMedia’s many campaigns to keep the Internet free, open, and democratic.