trolls.dev
02 The reader — case study

DReader

The Drudge Report, minus the noise.

A clean, ad-free, mobile-optimized reader for DrudgeReport.com. Fast pages, readable type, none of the clutter — the same headlines, with everything between you and them thrown away.

Status
Live
Platform
Mobile web
Price
Free
Field
News · Reading
Ask us about DReader → All work
dreader.app Live
DReader Today
  • Markets close higher as inflation cools for a third month
  • Storm system tracks east; coastal counties brace for surge
  • Rocket lifts off at dawn on second attempt after scrub
  • City council approves plan to reopen the waterfront line
ads · 0 just the headlines
Almost everything we built was deciding what to leave out. The bet behind it

Why we built it

A page designed in 1997, read on a phone in 2026.

The Drudge Report is one of the most-visited news pages on the internet, and its format hasn't meaningfully changed in decades: three dense columns of tiny links, designed for a desktop monitor. On a phone, that means squinting, pinch-zooming, and mis-tapping — through a thicket of ads.

Millions of people check it anyway, every day, out of habit and because the editorial voice is the product. The content was never the problem. The reading experience was.

DReader keeps the headlines and throws away everything between you and them.

What we made Four moves
  1. 01

    Just the headlines

    Every link from the Drudge Report, reformatted into a clean list you can actually scan. Nothing added, nothing buried.

  2. 02

    Ad-free, by design

    No banners, no pop-overs, no autoplay video chasing you down the page. The story you tapped is the only thing on screen.

  3. 03

    Built for one hand

    Type sized for phones, targets sized for thumbs. Reading the news on the bus shouldn't require pinch-zooming a desktop page.

  4. 04

    Fast on purpose

    Light pages that load quickly on any connection — because a news reader you have to wait for stops getting opened.

Choices we sweated

Mostly, we decided what not to build.

Respect the source

DReader doesn't editorialize, reorder, or filter. The Drudge Report's editors pick the headlines; we just make them readable on a phone.

Respect the reader

No engagement tricks — no infinite feeds, no notification nagging, no 'one more story' hooks. You read the headlines, you put the phone down.

Subtraction as a feature

Almost everything we 'built' was deciding what to leave out. The hard part of a clean reader isn't the code — it's the restraint.

Further reading from the journal

The thinking behind all that restraint is in our note In defense of small software — and why we only build things we run ourselves is in Why we only build what we run.

DReader has its own privacy policy and terms of use. It is an independent reader and is not affiliated with or endorsed by DrudgeReport.com.

Colophon End of Case Study 02

The news, with the noise turned off.

Drop us a line and we'll point you at the app — or tell us what other site deserves the same clean-up treatment.

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