Current ITN postings are much too focused on significant milestones, records, and one-time or recurring 'finite' events. Only these things fit nicely in a 'blurb', at the detriment of all other newsworthy items. Adopting an 'ongoing' box gives countless benefits to the ITN space in general, and makes it a much more useful resource for our readership. The advantages of the 'ongoing' banner are described below:
More postings for advancement in science: for example, recently Vitamins were highly scrutinized by a medical journal; this is news that is pretty significant for all humanity. But this cannot fit nicely in a blurb so it would never have a chance of being posted in ITN, despite it being significant 'news'. Modern scientific discoveries are often incremental and not 'groundbreaking'; many of its contents are esoteric. None of this can be captured in a single blurb.
Reduce debate on recurring sporting events: For something so widely followed as the UEFA Champions League, or perhaps the NCAA's "March Madness", where much of the interest is generated during the competition rather than at the end, it would be extremely useful to have an 'ongoing' link to these events. This would also end the debate about whether or not to post 'finals' results. It would also allow more 'minor' sports such as Rugby Union or Women's Handball a place on this banner without the objections normally seen if a full blurb were posted.
Complementary with 'Recent Deaths' and 'Elections': The vast majority of 'recent deaths' and elections would be moved to the 'on-going banner'; there would never be ITN/R debates about whether or not an election from a medium-sized country such as Macedonia would be worthy of a full blurb posting.
On-going unresolved events of significant interest: For example, MH370, Syrian civil war, Ukraine, South Korean ferry sinking, LA Clippers owner racism
Direct access to subjects of news stories too complex for a blurb. For example the US Supreme Court recently handed down a ruling on Affirmative Action. There is no way to really 'encapsulate' this decision in a blurb as it is extremely complicated.
Posting of stories that are of significant media interest but often objected to on the grounds of 'systemic bias' or 'no pop culture allowed'. For example whether or not to post the birth of William and Kate's baby. Instead of a blurb, simply put a link to Prince George. Or when Tiger Woods had an affair and millions were looking for his article on the latest, simply post a link to "Tiger Woods". Colipon (Talk) 13:46, 30 April 2014 (UTC)
