19 September 2016
Euronews harnesses the versatility of Samsung Gear 360 to create 360-degree content for interactive video reporting.
Euronews announced today a project to create virtual reality (VR) news content by leveraging the Samsung Gear 360 to provide viewers an immersive experience.
Fully integrated in the regular workflow of its international newsroom, each week Euronews produces 360-degree news content using the Samsung Gear 360, which launched earlier this year.
As part of this project, supported by funding from the Google Digital News Initiative (DNI) Innovation Fund, Euronews journalists and its network of correspondents are equipped with a Samsung Gear 360 device and trained to maximise opportunities presented by the new platform.
The immersive journalism puts viewers in command by allowing them to choose the angle they want to watch the news – consumers can change the view of the newscast by using a mouse on a PC or by swiping their mobile screen. Original 360-degree content will include reports on current affairs, culture and sports, as well as sponsored content developed in collaboration with advertising partners.
The Samsung Gear 360 is lightweight and easy to use, making it convenient for Euronews reporters to transport while shooting news stories in Europe and around the world. News teams will use the device to capture breaking news and feature stories. The streamlined post-production editing process of content created by the Gear 360 means videos can be published quickly and efficiently for time-sensitive stories.
The interactive videos and images produced in collaboration with Samsung are available on PCs, tablets and mobile devices for consumers’ viewing pleasure – and with virtual reality headsets offering a more advanced viewing experience, there are new opportunities to reach a large audience and promote Euronews’ groundbreaking “All Views” philosophy.
Euronews incorporates the 360-degree news reports into regular workflows and publish content across digital platforms including euronews.com, YouTube, Facebook and VR sites such as Vrideo.
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Olivier de Montchenu, Euronews Sales Managing Director |
“Euronews’ immersive journalism project is a very exciting and promising development that will involve journalists and editors from across the company.
Our goal is to develop a sustainable monetisation model for our digital news ecosystem. Today, we are proud to cooperate with Samsung to enhance the work of our journalists and offer an unrivalled degree of reporting from a consumer media outlet, changing the way people view news forever.
In addition, Euronews brings to Samsung an opportunity to promote its Gear 360 device. As a multilingual media outlet, users will be able to watch 360-degree reports about international current affairs in their own language. We are convinced it is a good opportunity to reach a worldwide audience.”
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Duncan Hooper, Euronews Editor in chief, digital platforms |
“Our goal with our 360 project is to involve journalists from across our operations. The Samsung Gear 360 is intuitive to use and will allow us to create high-quality videos without requiring extensive technical training. Because it is small and lightweight, we can take it with us on any shoot and the simple post production process means that for the first time, we are able to turn around VR content quickly for time-sensitive news events.”
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Heesun Kim, Vice President of Global Marketing,
Mobile Communications Business at Samsung Electronics. |
“This is an exciting time as we push boundaries in the way news content is created and delivered through our collaboration with Euronews. Imagine being able to sit in the stands of a sporting event happening across the globe or standing in the crowd, witnessing an important political debate. With the Gear 360, Samsung makes this possible by offering viewers a truly immersive and interactive 360-degree experience.”
(Source: Euronews press release)
13 July 2016
Broadcasting Board of Governors (BBG) Chairman Jeff Shell was denied entry into Russia and detained at Moscow’s Sheremetevo Airport last night after arriving shortly before midnight on a flight from Prague. Shell was denied entry into the country despite having a valid passport and Russian visa, and subsequently detained in a locked room for several hours, before being accompanied by Russian security officials to board a flight to Amsterdam. No explanation has yet been given to Shell, or the BBG, for his detention.
Shell told colleagues with whom he was traveling that airport security authorities told him the denial of entry into Russia has permanent status and is “a life-time ban.”
BBG officials met with U.S. Ambassador John Tefft in Moscow this morning to discuss the incident and to thank the Ambassador and the U.S. Department of State for their urgent attention to the matter.
Mr. Shell is a Presidential appointee who serves in a part-time capacity as Chairman of the Board that oversees all U.S. international media. He is also the chairman of NBCUniversal’s Filmed Entertainment Division.
(Source: BBG press release)
29 January 2015
To mark its 77th anniversary, BBC Arabic is launching a new radio schedule, and new programmes to be broadcast from Cairo and London. The new programmes will offer listeners a modern BBC platform with a dynamic pace, less formal presentation style and strong audience participation via mobile phones and online at bbcarabic.com. BBC Arabic is also re-launching its YouTube channel.
To celebrate the anniversary, BBC Arabic will host a concert of classical Arabic music on Saturday 31 January at Broadcasting House in London, the building that saw the launch of BBC broadcasts in Arabic in 1938.
BBC Arabic has established a deep-rooted relationship with its Arabic speaking audiences by providing objective, impartial and trusted news, world-class documentaries and investigative programmes. The numerous awards for BBC Arabic output include two prestigious prizes at the Association for International Broadcasting awards in 2014: the Investigative Radio Documentary award for Forbidden Love, about interfaith marriages in Egypt, and the TV International Investigative Documentary for Saudi’s Secret Uprising.
Recent audience research (2014) shows BBC Arabic’s overall audience reach has risen by more than 11 per cent to 36.2 million adults weekly – up from 32.5 million in 2012 to 2013. Since the ‘Arab Spring’ in 2010, BBC Arabic’s weekly audience has risen from 21.6 to 36.2 million – an increase of 68 per cent.
On 27 January, BBC Arabic radio launched new-style news programmes and four new strands:
- Sport News: A daily half-hour radio round-up of regional and world sports.
- Women Today: A daily half-hour news and current affairs radio programme that focuses on women in the news in the Middle East and across the world. The programme offers a mix of reports, interviews and interactive debate.
- Midnight Talk: A daily 50-minute programme for younger listeners. The programme provides a platform to freely investigate and debate social and political issues most relevant to young people in the Middle East. The programme has a chatty, informal tone and offers live interviews, music and a stage for talented young people.
- Radio Archive: A weekly 27-minute strand, the Programme, draws on more than 70 years of BBC Arabic Radio archive with rare and exclusive material. The programme also will offer current interviews with relevant people on some of the issues which have been raised in the past and still resonate today.
Tarik Kafala, the Head of BBC Arabic says: “This is a very exciting time for BBC Arabic. We are reaching our biggest audiences in our 77 years and developing in ways that will make us more relevant and essential than ever, on all platforms. Today, we’re celebrating radio, the medium on which our reputation is built. The investment in new programmes and a new schedule shows our deep commitment to radio and our listeners, the heart and foundation of BBC Arabic.”
22 May 2014
Graham Phillips, the RT freelancer and British national detained for a day and a half by the Ukrainian authorities, was released near midnight on May 22nd.
Following his release, Phillips tweeted some details of his detention, saying that after being stopped at Mariupol, he was “transferred to Zaporozhye where I stayed the night, under armed guard. Removed by armed guard today, questioned thoroughly on my work for [RT]. All my work in order, no charges, no deportation, no one laid a hand on me in anger, Ukrainian authorities treated me fairly. All ok.”
Graham Phillips was detained at a Ukrainian National Guard block post early on May 20th. He could not be reached for more than 30 hours. RT worked with Russian, Ukrainian, British and international authorities, watchdog groups and human rights organizations to secure his release.
“We are grateful to everyone who worked with RT to bring about Graham’s release,” said Margarita Simonyan, RT’s editor in chief. “Let’s hope that the two LifeNews reporters, Oleg Sidyakin and Marat Saichenko, who are still being held captive, are freed as well in the shortest order, and that all journalists are allowed to freely and safely carry out their work in Ukraine going forward.” (Source: Press release)
7 November 2011
UPDATE 07/11/11 – VOTING HAS NOW CLOSED AND THE WINNER WILL BE ANNOUNCED AT THE AIBS GALA AWARDS DINNER ON WEDNESDAY 9TH NOVEMBER
Online viewers can vote for the best international broadcast coverage of democracy uprisings and the Arab Spring and so choose the winner of the AIB Yahoo! Maktoob Peoples Choice award for 2011. The videos can be viewed on Yahoo! Maktoob, the Yahoo! website for the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) and the votes of online viewers will determine the winner.
Broadcasts from Alhurra TV, Aljazeera English, Deutsche Welle Arabic, France24, New Delhi Television (NDTV) and Press TV has been shortlisted and their videos (full length and 5 minute highlights) are available to view on Yahoo! Maktoob. Four entries are in English with Arabic subtitles and two in Arabic with English subtitles so that they cater for both English-speaking and Arabic-speaking audiences. The programme which receives the most votes from online viewers will be presented with the award on Nov 9th.
Between them they cover events from all over the Arab Spring including the revolution in Tunisia, the uprisings and conflict in Libya, the Egyptian revolution, unrest in Syria and the demonstrations and crackdown in Bahrain.
How to vote:
1. Go to the page with all the videos video.maktoob.com/program_videos-مسابقة-اتحاد-البث-الدولي-وياهو!-مكتوب-2011-196
2. This page is in Arabic but broadcasters names are in English as well, so English-speakers can also choose the programmes they would like to watch.
3. Click on a video that you want to watch and view it. At the end use the browser back button to return to the page with all videos
4. When you have decided on the video you want to vote for, select that video and underneath it click on the yellow button which contains the text VOTE as well as its Arabic equivalent.
5. You have to login or register with Yahoo! to vote to prevent multiple voting follow the instructions which are in English and Arabic
6. Once are are logged in, cast your vote
7. Voting closes at the end of Sunday, 6th November (midnight Cairo time)
Thank you for your participation.
TV broadcasts had a huge effect on the uprisings that took place during the Arab Spring they were shaped by the people taking part and they were of huge importance to inform others and involve them in the protests. It is fitting that online viewers in the Middle East and across the world will vote to determine the broadcast that affected them most.
