In June we were delighted to be one of the recipients of the Innovation in Development Reporting grants from the European Journalism Center in Maastricht to use a combination of comics and 360 video to offer an immersive window into the lives of families based in Gawair, a slum north of Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh. Bangladesh has been increasingly plagued by floods, tornados … Read More
This week in VR/AR: Dreaming, touching and education
This past week, there have been a series of tech developments in virtual and augmented reality. For one, Nikon took a step into the VR space with its new KeyMission series of cameras. In addition to the GoPro-like KeyMission 170 and KeyMission 80 chest camera, the KeyMission 360 is a strong new competitor for action. In addition to shooting 360 video … Read More
Last week in VR/AR: iPhone 7, Snapchat and a hedgehog
The biggest develops in VR/AR last week weren’t directly in the field, but in seemingly unrelated industries. Mostly importantly, the highly anticipated announcement of the iPhone 7 hints at a (near) future of mobile technology embracing new forms of reality. For uploadvr.com, Az Balabanian wrote, “…the micro-innovations in Apple’s optical technology, computer vision, machine learning, and wireless audio make iPhone 7 a device with all … Read More
2nd anniversary of the Michael Brown shooting
Last week on August 9 was the second anniversary of the death of Michael Brown, an unarmed black man who was fatally shot by police officer Darren Wilson in Ferguson, Missouri. This launched protests in Ferguson that eventually developed into the Black Lives Matter movement, which now fights for the lives of black people around the country. Following Brown’s death, in 2014, … Read More
Comparing virtual reality to 3D video
Soumen Ganguly, a management consultant with more than 14 years experience in the telecommunications, media and technology space, thinks there is a lot of potential for virtual reality (VR). Unlike 3D, which at a pointin the 2000s was seen as a game changer in media consumption, virtual reality is more widely applicable, leading to “diverse, high quality content.” In addition, it … Read More
Featured in Journalism.co.uk
Check it out: #STOPtrafficking2016 made it on the front page of Journalism.co.uk “Imagine you are walking down the street in Rio during the Olympic Games or in the United States, where the US presidential elections are still in full swing. You reach a billboard or a sign showing the Olympic rings or Hillary Clinton’s campaign logo, and by simply pointing your … Read More
Can VR induce empathy? Behind our work with the Tow Center at Columbia Journalism School
Can new technologies like virtual and augmented reality and 360 video induce empathy in users? That is what Empathetic Media founder Dan Archer is studying in collaboration with Columbia University’s Tow Center for Digital Journalism. A first of its kind project, this research will result in an analysis of empathy and whether users can more closely relate to characters and situations in a VR … Read More
How we met Hari from Nepal – #STOPtrafficking2016
As part of the World Day Against Trafficking in Persons on July 30, we released our latest augmented reality story, “#STOPtrafficking2016.” The AR experience uses traffic stop signs as a trigger. Users can go up to a real world stop sign or a graphic of one to view the story, which explores human trafficking through the stories of three people affected by it. Below, Empathetic … Read More
360 film highlights the beautiful effects of protecting ecosystems
While we previously wrote about how virtual reality (VR) is being used to shed light on parts of the world that are being negatively affected by climate change and human intervention, this recent piece for Conservation International proves that VR can also be used to show how people are working to rebuild ecosystems. The Bird’s Head Seascape surrounding Papua New Guinea in … Read More
Learn about our new AR story #STOPtrafficking2016
The World Day Against Trafficking in Persons on July 30 seeks to find justice for the approximately 21 million people who are trafficked annually around the world. This is a global issue: according to the UN, at least 127 of the 195 recognized countries have reported incidents of trafficking. Empathetic Media has partnered with the ATTeam from the Red Cross Pancevo (part of the … Read More