While traditional print media is in narrative format (eg: headline, lead-in, intro para, body copy, conclusion), web editorial content is based on the format of hyperlinks, multimedia and 3D Information.
For most commercial and consumer-oriented sites, web writers reach web users most successfully when they break down content into digestible info-bits that can connect in multi-linear sequence, like game pieces in 3D Tic Tac Toe. Hyperlinks make information bits dynamic and interconnected. A writer can try to guide the reader into a sequenced experience but the reader will venture freely through information, or ignore it, as they wish. Clear, concise communications best catches the attention of meandering eyes.
According to web usability guru Jakob Nielsen, only a small number of web users are likely to make significant use of all the tools a site provides. While some sites with particular demographics, such as MySpace and Facebook, have large involved communities of users, "Most people just want to get in, get it and get out," said Mr Nielsen. "For them the web is not a goal in itself. It is a tool.”
For long-form writing on the web, turn to Salon, The New Yorker, The Morning News and other literary-minded online publications.
Resources:
BBC, for rich content
Useit, for usability research about how users read the web
Content Critical book by Gerry McGovern
American Society of Magazine Editors best practices for digital media
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