I don’t have any problem with the new logo, necessarily (though the favicon reminds me of a premium Men’s Underwear storefront), but I do have a problem with their lack of faith in their brand identity. When Facebook or Google rebrand, it’s subtle. The typeface might change, or they’ll round off the serifs, but the logo is still recognizably them. This logo abandons that entirely. Couple that with the clapping, and I just get the impression they don’t know how to improve their website.
Speaking of clapping, what the hell? Is there a finite amount of “claps” you have? Can you earn claps? Will people start shaming others for not giving enough claps? Why is this better than liking, or an upvote/downvote system?
Medium should be thinking about how to monetize the site in a way that makes sense. Their premium service isn’t attractive at all. Why isn’t it more enticing for content creators? I would pay to have more options or features, or opportunities to expand my reader-base. A premium service on Medium should not be targeted at the consumers of the content — it should be for the creators.