I tend to agree that MSN is an abomination. My own home page is set to the
New York Times. But then, I'm an old fogey. If the rest of the world looks
at the MSN home page and thinks that American culture and values are
reflected in the choices as displayed there, they are getting a terrible
picture. I expect the .SE version has similar issues.
I stopped using the MSN home page when their search mechanism became
intrusive. I do go back every once in a while, and find, perhaps, a story
or two that was worth looking at. OTOH, there are always between 3 and 6
stories at the New York Times I'm glad I've read, on a daily basis.