You can imbed a news feed or news ticker directly onto any content page in Govstack so users can view a list of recent news articles. Learn how to add a news feed to a page and adjust its content and display options.
Before you can add a news feed to a content page, you need to set up a news category using the news and alerts feature in Govstack.
Note that by default all news posts will display in chronological order, newest to oldest, based on the settings in the 'Original post date' field.
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Add a news feed or news ticker
To add a news feed or ticker to a page, you need to:
- Navigate to the page where you'd like to add a news feed
- Select the 'Add content' button under the 'Main content' area of the page 'Content' tab
- This will open the 'Add content' slide-out panel
- From here, select the 'News Feed' component
Next, you can customize the content and display options for the news feed.
Customize the content and display options
You can customize the content and appearance of the news feed by completing the following content and display details.
News feed or news ticker content
You can choose what news categories and articles to display in your news feed. To do this, you need to:
- Select the 'Content' tab in the news feed component
- In the 'Heading' field, add the text to display at the top of the news feed, then in 'Heading Level' select the heading style to apply to this title
- Optional. In the 'Secondary Heading' field enter an additional smaller heading to display with the 'Heading' and select a size (small, medium, or large)
- Set the number in 'Posts to Display' to control how many news posts are shown in the news feed
- Optional. 'Starting Post Number' sets the number of the news post that appears first in the feed. For example a 4 will start the feed at the 4th post in chronological order. This option is used if you want to combine feeds across different feed styles or columns. For example, if your first news feed has a 'Posts to Display' setting of 3, the the second synced feed would have a 'Starting Post Setting' or 4 so that it looks like it continues on from the first. If this setting is left blank the feed will display all posts starting at the most current (or the featured post)
- Optional. Add featured posts. Posts added to this list will appear first in the news feed, and will stay at the top of the feed, ignoring chronological ordering and new posts. Non-featured posts will appear in chronological order after the featured posts
- Optional. Add a Featured post label. This text appears as part of each feature post added to the 'Featured posts' list. This label helps call out featured posts as distinct from other posts in the feed
- Next to 'Categories', select 'Add' and then check off the news categories you want to include in the news feed. After you have selected your categories, click 'Submit'. Leaving this selection blank will include all news categories
- Set the 'View all link style' to your preference. The 'Links' setting will add a text link to the bottom of the feed. The 'Button' style will replace this text with a button instead.
- Use the 'View all link' or 'View all button' to set the target for the view all link. This can target the News node, individual category or author pages. If you are using a text link set the 'View all link text' to set the visible text for the link seen at the bottom of the feed
- Add text to the 'Empty feed placeholder' field. This text is displayed if no news posts are displayed in the news feed
News feed or news ticker display
The news ticker is a variation of the news feed display. Rather than display news post vertically, it creates a horizontally scrolling feed that displays one news post at a time. You can switch between the two options by selecting the 'News Ticker' toggle in the 'Display' tab.
You can customize how the news feed is displayed on the page. To do this, you need to:
- Select the 'Display' tab at the top of the news feed component
- Turn on or off the 'Display as news ticker' toggle to indicate whether or not you want a standard vertical or pod style feed or a horizontal rotating news ticker. Selecting the news ticker option will remove many of the display settings
- Select an 'Auto rotate speed' in seconds. Setting this option to 0 with prevent the news ticker from rotating automatically. Posts will only change using the manual controls. For auto rotating tickers 8 seconds is the minimum recommended setting. This option is available for news tickers only
- Turn on or off the 'Show news image' toggle to indicate whether or not you want to display each news article's summary image in the news feed. This option is not available for news tickers
- If the 'Show news image' toggle is set to yes, you can set a default image. This is the image that will appear if a news post doesn't have an image in its summary. Adding a default image can help keep your news feed looking consistent if not all posts have summary images. If you don't add a default image then posts without images will display as plain text based on other display settings. This option is not available for news tickers
- If the 'Show news image' toggle is set to yes, you can select an 'Image style' for your news feed images. This sets the shape used for all the images displayed in the news feed. Note that you can adjust the focal point, crop, and zoom of each image in the Media section. This option is not available for news tickers
- Turn on or off the 'Show summary text' toggle to indicate whether or not you want to display news article descriptions, pulled from the post's summary, in the news feed. If this option is active you can also set the 'Summary text character limit' to specify how much of the summary text to display with each post. This option is not available for news tickers
- Turn on or off the 'Show authors' toggle to indicate whether or not you want to display the author of each news post in the news feed. If this option is active you can also toggle 'Show author image' to display the image available from the author's page. This option is not available for news tickers
- Turn on or off the 'Display original post date' toggle to indicate whether or not you want to show the post's date in the news feed. If this option is active you can also select a date format for the date display. This option is available for both news feeds and tickers
- Turn on or off the 'Show categories' toggle to indicate whether or not you want to include the associated category or categories for each news article in the news feed. If this option is active you can also toggle 'Show categories label icon' to display the icon available from the category's page. This option is not available for news tickers.
- Turn on or off the 'Show tags' toggle to indicate whether or not you want display the tags included with each news article in the news feed. If this option is active you can also toggle 'Show tags label icon' to display the icon available from the tag. Tags are an addon feature and may not be available on all websites. This option is not available for news tickers.
News feed / ticker settings
You can adjust the look and layout of your news feed or news ticker through the settings tab. To access the news feed settings, select the 'Settings' tab located at the top of the 'News Feed' slide-out panel.
The settings for news feeds vary depending on if the news feed is added as a stand alone component, part of a split component or as a pod sub-component.
Review each of the news feed settings to learn more.
Design and layout
The design and layout settings are only available if the news feed is added as a component or as part of a split component. If you are adding a news feed as a sub-component in a pod then the design and layout of the parent pod controls the appearance of the news feed.
Item text position
Select where you would like the headings and text to appear in relation to the image. Text can be placed above or below the image, to the right or left of the image or overlaid on the image.
Note that overlaying text on an image requires that the image be tinted to assure a minimum level of contrast for those with visual impairments. Selecting overlay will add additional settings to control how the tint is applied.
Add item background color
You can add a background color which will appear behind the Text/Image component in the pod.
To do this, turn on the 'Add background color' toggle. Next, choose which background color you would like to use from the options next to 'Item background color'.
This option will only be available if the 'Overlay' item text position is not selected.
Overlay background color
Select the color to apply as a tint over your image. If no color is selected Govstack will apply your base color. A tint is required and cannot be deactivated.
This option will only be available if the 'Overlay' item text position is selected.
Overlay background style
Select how the tint will be applied to your image. 'Cover image' will apply the selected tint to the whole image. 'Behind text' will apply the tint as a block behind your text, leaving the rest of the image un-tinted.
This option will only be available if the 'Overlay' item text position is selected.
Overlay text position
Select top, middle, or bottom to select the vertical text alignment relative to the image in the background.
This option will only be available if the 'Overlay' item text position is selected.
Items per row - Desktop
Set the number of items displayed per row for desktop viewports. This also serves as the default for tablet and mobile if not specified.
If you have more sub-components included in your pod than the number of items you've selected per row, the pod's sub-components will continue to the next row on your page. If you don't have as many sub-components in your pod as the number of items you've selected per row, the pod will leave the empty items' spaces blank within that row on your page.
Items per row - Tablet
Optionally set the number of items displayed per row for tablet viewports. The desktop value will be used if not set.
If you have more sub-components included in your pod than the number of items you've selected per row, the pod's sub-components will continue to the next row on your page. If you don't have as many sub-components in your pod as the number of items you've selected per row, the pod will leave the empty items' spaces blank within that row on your page.
Items per row - Mobile Landscape
Optionally set the number of items displayed per row for landscape mobile viewports. Items are always displayed in a single column on portrait mobile viewports. The desktop value will be used if not set.
Be cautious when using multiple columns on mobile presentations. Content may become distorted or difficult to interact with.
If you have more sub-components included in your pod than the number of items you've selected per row, the pod's sub-components will continue to the next row on your page. If you don't have as many sub-components in your pod as the number of items you've selected per row, the pod will leave the empty items' spaces blank within that row on your page.
Item heading size
Select the 'Heading' size of news post titles. All options are visual and non-semantic.
Item text alignment
Select the alignment of text in your news posts. Options are 'Left', 'Center', or 'Right'.
Use 'Left' alignment wherever possible. Centered and right aligned text can be difficult for those with reading challenges to process. These option should be limited to areas with small amounts of text and line lengths of five or fewer words.
Item border style
Select a border to display with your posts. Options include:
- No border - This is the default view and makes no changes in how posts are presented.
- Divider lines - Adds a vertical divider line between each post. In some configurations this may also add horizontal divider lines. This line uses the border color and style for the applied design node.
- Full border - Creates a full border around each post using the border color and style for the applied design node. Note that this may add additional padding, depending on the site design settings.
Enable carousel
Select the 'Enable carousel' toggle if you would like to add a rotating carousel effect to your posts.
If this option is enabled you will also be able to select if the carousel displays arrows and dots for navigation, as well as set the slide delay using the 'Auto rotate speed' slider.
Featured post heading size
Select the 'Heading' size of featured news post titles. All options are visual and non-semantic.
Featured post label color
If label colors have been configured, select the color applied to the label on featured posts. If no color is selected, the background color highlight will be used.
Featured post label position
Select where the featured post label will appear within the news post. Note that the category and image position options only apply if 'Show categories' and 'Show news image' are enabled, respectively.
Categories label color
Select the color of the category labels that display with news posts when 'Show categories' is enabled. If no color is selected, the default label color or default style is used.
Tags label color
If label colors have been configured, select the color of the tags labels that display with posts. If no color is selected, default styling will be used. Tags are an optional feature. If they are not enabled on your site this setting will have no effect.
Column widths
These settings will be available only if the component is contained within a split component.
Using the 'Column Width' sliders you can set the width of the component in split components. The slider allows for column widths from 1 to 12. A minimum width of 2 is recommended.
The total width settings for 'Split Section 1' and 'Split Section 2' should equal 12. If the sum of 'Split Section 1' and 'Split Section 2' is greater than 12, your split content will appear on two rows.
Separate options are available for desktop and tablet size screens. On mobile screens split components switch to a single column.
Component
Content colors
You can customize the content colors of the component using the colors that are part of your website design. Depending on your website design, you can add a colored background behind the component to create a hot spot on the page.
The color options are based on the design of your website. You may be able to change the design colors depending on your Govstack plan. To get access to the website design features, speak with your GHD Digital Account Executive.
Background image
If you'd like, you can add an image to the background of your component. To do this, you need to:
- Select the "+" icon next to the "Background image" field
- This will open the 'Media' folder
- From here, choose the folder that contains the image you'd like to add
- Select the image you'd like to insert
- Press the "Select" button
Warning
Background images ignore the focal point and cropping information added to your image in the media tab. Instead they use the settings provided under "Background image options".
Adding an image behind text can cause color contrast issues for users with low vision or color blindness. You should only add an image behind text if it meets the color contrast ratio requirements associated with accessibility legislation in your region.
Background images do not use alternative text and are not called out for those using screen readers. Make sure that background images do not contain information critical to understanding the meaning or context of your content.
Background image options
You can also set a few options for a background image, including the placement of the image, size of the image and whether or not the image repeats.
These settings replace the cropping and sizing settings added in the media section image editor.
Cover - The image will stretch to fill the available space. This is the most popular option for a single image background.
Full-Width - The image stretches to fill the full width of the available space. Depending on the characteristics of the image this may result in gaps at the top and bottom of the component.
Auto - The image displays at it's actual size. This may leave gaps around the edges of your component.
Repeat - The background image with tile vertically and horizontally. Use a smaller image or a tiling image for best results.
Repeat Horizontal - As repeat but the background image tiles in a single row.
Repeat Vertical - As repeat but the background image tiles in a single column.
Image Placement
This setting replaces the focal point setting added in the media section image editor.
Select the origin point of your background image. The image will fill the space behind your component starting from the selected point. You may need to experiment to find the best contrast and focal point position for each image.
Component width
This setting only applies if you are using a page with a 'Full' page layout. Typically, full page layouts are reserved for the home page of your website or any landing pages you've created.
Animation
Animate
You can add animation to the component by selecting the 'Animate' toggle. Once the 'Animate' toggle is selected, you'll have the option to customize the:
- Animation style
- Animation delay (seconds)
- Animation duration (seconds)
Animation style
From the 'Animation style' dropdown menu, select the type of animation you'd like to add to the accordion. There are a variety of different animation options in the following categories:
- Attention Seekers
- Bouncing Entrances
- Fading Entrances
- Flippers
- Light Speed
- Rotating Entrances
- Sliding Entrances
- Zoom Entrances
- Specials
We recommend testing out a variety of animation styles to select the one you like the most.
Please note
Animation styles can cause accessibility issues for some users visiting your website. For example, some users may experience motion sickness when viewing animated elements on your website.
Animation delay
Using the 'Animation delay' slider select the time in seconds that you'd like to delay the animation.
Please note
Animation delay can cause accessibility issues for some users visiting your website. Certain animation styles and delays can combine to make your animated component invisible to screen readers. Please test your animations to make sure they are accessible.
Animation duration
You can select how long you'd like the animation to last on the component by using the 'Animation duration' slider. Select the number of seconds you'd like the animation to continue on the public website.
Advanced
Name
In the 'Name' field you can give a unique name to the component. This will make it easier to differentiate between components, both on your page as well as in your clipboard.
Anchor name
You can create an anchor link that will link a user directly to the top of this component.
When linking to this page add the anchor to the "Anchor / querystring" field in the "Select link" dialogue box. The link will then jump to the top of the target component rather than to the top of the page.
Note that anchor names are case sensitive. For best results use lowercase characters, numbers, and dashes only. Avoid spaces and special characters.
Custom classes
In the 'Custom classes' field, you can add any custom CSS classes you may have. Custom CSS classes can be found in the Design node under the 'CSS' tab in the backend of Govstack.
If you'd like to add more than one custom class, you'll need to leave a space between each class.
Please note that depending on your Govstack plan, you may not be able to access the Design node in the backend. If you'd like to be able to add custom CSS and get access to the website design, contact your GHD Digital Account Executive.
We cannot guarantee that future updates to Govstack will not break or negatively impact custom CSS.
Additional styles
You can select additional styles to the component, including:
- Spacing
- Visibility
- Design
Spacing
You can remove the spacing around the component by selecting one of the following options:
- Remove spacing
- Remove spacing top only
- Remove spacing bottom only
Visibility
You can customize the visibility of the component. Select one of the following options:
- Hide on all screens
- Hide on extra small screens
- Hide on small screens
- Hide on medium screens
- Hide on large screens
- Hide on extra large screens
Design
Select one of the following options if you'd like to customize the design of the component:
- Show shadows - this will add a shadow effect to the component. Note that by default most Govstack websites do not have shadows. You can add these in the Design node
- Sticky - the component will stay on the screen even as users scroll down the page
Hide from website
Turn on the 'Hide from website' toggle if you'd like to hide this component from the web page.
Preview and publish changes
Once you've added a banner to your page, make sure to preview and publish the page to complete the process.