The New York Times picks Samsung to help publish daily 360° video
Despite its troubles with the Galaxy Note 7, Samsung is still a leader in technology, which is why The New York Times has partnered with Samsung Electronics America, Inc. to launch The Daily 30 to deliver a 360° video every day.
Credit: New York Times
“To understand the world see it from every angle,” says the tag on the promo intro video on the new site.
The Daily 360, which launched November 1, lets viewers see the news from all angles. It gives Times journalists access to Samsung’s Gear 360 cameras and equipment to use in the field. The first news video on the platform is “In the Rubble of an Airstrike in Yemen,” which shows the carnage after an airstrike on a reception hall in Sana, Yemen, that killed at least 100 people, with a few short sentences explaining the video. It was shot by Pulitzer Prize-winning photographer Tyler Hicks and Times Middle East correspondent Ben Hubbard.
“From Snowfall to The Upshot to The Displaced, the award-winning VR film that blazed the trail in VR journalism, The Times has been the leader in visual digital storytelling,” said Dean Baquet, executive editor, The New York Times. “Whether The Times is on the campaign trail, the front lines of Aleppo, or in the front row at Fashion Week, The Daily 360 brings you there to bear witness with us.”
The Daily 360 will be published to Times platforms, including its main site plus mobile and VR apps, as well as to Samsung VR, the company’s virtual reality content service. In addition, Samsung 837 is building an evergreen experience to feature The Daily 360 content within its Explore the Galaxy area.
The project looks to be a first in melding a major traditional media outlet with 360° and VR technology, and The Times hopes it ushers in a new era of journalism, with immersive reporting and visuals. The Daily 360 reports will be run by a team of VR leaders in the Times’s New York newsroom, and some of the first assignments will be to show footage from both sides of the campaign trail in the week before the election.
“It’s because of Samsung’s support and filming technology that we’re able to give global audiences a true sense of what it means when The New York Times is covering the breadth of what’s happening in the world,” added Meredith Kopit Levien, executive vice president and chief revenue officer, The New York Times Company. “Last year we delivered the VR experience to the masses, along with dozens of VR films since then, but now it’s time to make 360 video a part of the daily news report, as common as text or interactives.”
Marc Mathieu, chief marketing officer at Samsung Electronics America added: “Virtual reality storytelling isn't just exciting and immersive, it can forge a lasting and empathetic connection between viewers and subjects. In collaborating with The New York Times, we want Samsung’s innovative products and services to show how coverage of the world's most important stories can be made richer, more useful, and more human when augmented by 360-degree experiences.”
The Times and Samsung will mark the launch of The Daily 360 with an event and panel discussion about the future of news, that will feature Times journalists Sam Dolnick, senior editor; Lisa Tobin, executive producer, audio; and Marcelle Hopkins, executive producer, 360 news; moderated by Jake Silverstein, editor in chief, The New York Times Magazine, at Samsung 837 on Thursday, Nov. 10 in New York City.