How different can newspaper websites be?

Goodness knows some of them can certainly use improving. It's hard to find what you're looking for on many of them, and even harder to find the things you aren't looking for, but would be informed or entertained by if you just knew they were there. (There still is nothing like holding that paper in your hands and just browsing the ads and stories....)

So, the Bivings report on the 10 Best Newspaper Websites is interesting, but it's hard to know if I'd change the list. Every site frustrates at times.

I was struck, though by the comment on the 8th-ranked paper, the Austin American-Statesman: "We really like the unique layout and coloring of this site’s homepage."
Hmm. Look at the color and layout of the two papers ranked above this one, the Knoxville News-Sentinel and the Fresno Bee. Not a whole lot of difference there....