WASHINGTON—A VR mini-documentary about a homeless woman living under a Seattle bridge may not seem at first glance like the stuff of television. But don’t tell that to director of photography Matt Mrozinski, Toby Rigby, marketing/promotions producer and Evonne Benedict, director of digital media, at KING-TV.
The three TEGNA employees narrate the first of what will be 10 video profiles that make up a new NAB/PILOT campaign to spotlight people in broadcasting who are using innovative technologies to tell stories and convey information to radio and TV audiences in unique ways. The campaign, announced Feb. 8 and running through April, is called “Broadcast Innovation Stories.”
“Broadcasters have seen tremendous advances in technology in recent years that have improved our mission to provide local news, weather, entertainment and emergency information to our communities,” said PILOT Executive Director John Clark in a press release announcing the effort. “This campaign highlights the men and women who are developing the tools and processes that are changing local radio and television in new and exciting ways.”
One new video and five new capsules will be released online each week. Other videos will feature:
· Hearst’s women-led startup accelerator;
· iHeartMedia’s voice-powered platforms;
· News Press & Gazette’s Next Gen TV initiative;
· Bonneville’s KSL-TV (Salt Lake City, UT) “Radio You Can See” programming;
· Development of the NextRadio app;
· Use of newsgathering drones by WCBS in New York; and
· The broadcast and digital footprint of Raycom’s national investigative unit.
The video about KING-TV’s VR mini-doc as well as the VR mini documentary “Under the Bridge” is available online.
