Modernizing news publishing with AWS
The Minnesota Star Tribune
The Minnesota Star Tribune needed to modernize critical technical software and infrastructure for its news publishing and delivery systems.
Architecture overhaul
The Minnesota Star Tribune, a major news organization, has been publishing content for over 150 years, becoming a critical source of information in its metropolitan area and the state of Minnesota. Over their long life they’ve augmented traditional print media with modern digital formats, including web content, video, podcasts, social media, and digital newsletters.
When the organization’s new leadership established an ambitious strategy to expand their presence to better serve the state and region, their product and engineering teams knew they needed to modernize their cloud architecture—and that they would benefit from outside expertise.
After evaluating a number of options, the Minnesota Star Tribune’s technology leadership engaged Solution Design Group (SDG), a Minneapolis-based business and technology consulting firm. They cited SDG’s status as an AWS Advanced Tier Services partner and long history of solving business problems through custom technology solutions as a reason for selecting SDG.
Using their expertise in Amazon’s AWS cloud technology and project management and execution, SDG collaborated with the Star Tribune’s product and engineering teams to modernize their publishing systems from the ground up, tackling mission-critical architecture, technology, and overall resilience while improving user experience and containing costs.
Replatforming to streamline operations
The initiative required the team to re-architect core platform components, update the technology stack, and use AWS best practices to ensure the platform’s scalability and reliability. While modernizing the system, the team reworked an existing CMS’s API and front-end, originally built on Laravel and PHP, to modern frameworks using NestJS, GraphQL, Next.js, and React. The revamped platform now operates on AWS ECS with MongoDB, and takes advantage of a robust cloud infrastructure to support the customer’s high-demand, real-time news operations.
The team recommended AWS CloudWatch and DataDog for enhanced observability, incident response, monitoring, and network topology.
They introduced cache layers with AWS ElastiCache and CloudFront. Moreover, SDG helped set up AWS Security Hub, GuardDuty, and Macie for comprehensive security management, ensuring that the platform met the Star Tribune’s stringent data security and privacy requirements.
Other major components of this migration and modernization roadmap include:
- Replacing a legacy CMS with an event-driven architecture incorporating AWS SQS, SNS, and Lambda functions for real-time data processing.
- Migrating legacy user management systems to a third-party system.
- Executing a re-purchasing strategy for a classified ad and obituary management system, using a new third-party platform.
- Transitioning to a hub-and-spoke architectural model for a cleaner, more secure cloud network.
- Incorporating CI/CD standardization and container image scanning to ensure consistent and secure deployment practices.
- Revising the integration approach using the Directus configuration management system.
Collaborating for success
Throughout the modernization and migration, SDG’s team collaborated closely with the Minnesota Star Tribune’s technology, product, business, and editorial staff, working together to align the platform with AWS Well-Architected best practices.
By using a phased deployment strategy, including a controlled pilot and a limited MVP launch, the team could test new components in a live environment without disrupting existing services. Project and program leaders used weekly readiness sessions, risk mitigation strategies, and a carefully constructed launch plan to launch the initial release of the system on tight timelines with minimal disruption to workflows or user experience. The plan included extensive change management and training sessions to prepare both technical teams and business stakeholders for the new system.
The modernization has ensured that the Star Tribune’s digital platform is ready to meet current demands and also scale into the future. The shift to containerized, cloud-native solutions has reduced both operational costs and technical debt, while the multi-account AWS environment offers a pathway to expanded cloud usage. Together, AWS, SDG, and the Minnesota Star Tribune have delivered a digital platform that is resilient, scalable, and ready to support an ambitious mission for years to come.
Outcomes
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Improved resilienceReplaced several VM-based solutions to self-healing, containerized solutions running in ECS. |
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Improved content delivery and response times for readersDeployed an upgraded CMS using NestJS and GraphQL running on AWS ECS and cloud-based MongoDB. |
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Enhanced maintainabilityModernized legacy PHP applications to mainstream platforms such as React and NodeJS. |
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Better observability and incident response capabilityUtilized tools like AWS CloudWatch and Datadog. |
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Faster response timesImplemented caching technologies such as AWS ElastiCache and CloudFront. |
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Streamlined user experienceLaunched a new front-end design based on user feedback. |
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Contained costsPurchased reserve instances for RDS databases. |
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Reduced riskBuilt on state-of-the-art AWS solutions rather than homegrown code. |