VR, which is called "virtual reality technology" in Chinese, is the effective combination of the virtual world and the real world. This technology allows the user to enter a very fantastic virtual world, but feels real and three-dimensional. This technology is based on computers with "immersive" and "interactive" systems, and its basic element is "remote." VR can “move†“distant†scenes to “eyesâ€, and users can also intervene in scenarios based on their own ideas. It is based on these characteristics of VR that many scholars at home and abroad consider VR as the core support of "hypermedia" technology. It has an inestimable spread of "superpower." Thus, when Nonny de la Pena of the University of Southern California Annenberg School of Communication and Journalism first proposed the concept of "Immersive Journalism" (source of VR+News) in her 2010 paper, VR+ News has become a new way of news reporting. It gives the traditional news a more interesting “immersive†virtual interaction model. The use of this technology breaks the limitations of traditional news in distance and space, and allows the audience to experience the news immersively.
In 2013, the United States’ largest newspaper group, the “Jermeiyin Chronicle†of the Gannett Newspaper Group, created the first interpretive news item “Harvest of Change.†This is considered to be the first time in news reporting. VR technology marks the beginning of the real rise of VR technology in the American press. In 2015, the "New York Times" launched the "NYT VR" virtual reality APP and provided free copies of more than 1 million "Cardboard" carton goggles developed by Google for the "New York Times" subscribers. This project is considered to be The official start of VR+ news.
In China, VR+ news generally started in 2015. The People's Daily produced a “9.3†parade of VR panoramic video. Xinhua News Agency produced the VR+ news of “Will You†visit Shenzhen Landslide Rescue Site. In 2016, more representative VR+ news applications, such as CCTV network using real-time splicing 10 high-definition panoramic camera 4K panoramic camera, panoramic live sports awards ceremony. On September 15, 2016, the CCTV News Channel broadcasted the special program “Dream of Heaven†on the Tiangong 2 launch. When the Shenzhou 11 was introduced, the studio let the virtual Shenzhou spacecraft “fly†out of the screen; When introducing the internal structure of the aircraft, the host is “crossing†into its interior, allowing the audience to have a more intuitive, more vivid, and more specific understanding of the construction of the aircraft.
Second, the VR technology brings changes to news reporting (A) changes in the form of news reportsBefore the development of new media, news reporting methods were basically language symbols such as text, pictures, audio and video. VR news is no longer limited to a simple statement of news, but creates a 360-degree panorama. This breaks the constraints of time and space, allows users to immerse themselves in a "simulated" news scene, and provides more possibilities for real, comprehensive, and objective expression of news. For example, the VR+ news project produced by the Xinhua News Agency mentioned earlier - "Take You" to the "Shenzhen Landslide Rescue Site" to use a VR virtual reality technology that is more shocking and impactful than words and pictures. Reports made it almost easy to be remembered by the audience.
(II) Changes in news transmission relationsThe change in the way VR+ news is expressed makes the users of VR+News no longer “outsidersâ€, but “live witnesses†of news events. In traditional news, users obtain information mostly indirectly and passively. However, VR+News broke the third-person narrative approach, taking the user as the first perspective, increasing the user's selectivity and improving the user experience. For example, in the New York Times's VR+ news piece “Displacementâ€, users can look directly at the characters in a news story, listen to them tell their stories, and follow their steps to explore the geographical environment in which news events occur.
(3) Changes in the way news is producedAs a new form of news, the popularity of VR+ news has brought new demands to news producers. In addition to the ability of traditional journalists to write, edit, and record, they also need to learn and master the VR+ news shooting and production process. For the media industry, those with professional skills will be favored and valued by the industry along with excellent content producers.
Third, the VR + news problems in practical applications (a) authenticityIn the previous article we have already mentioned that one feature of VR is "interaction" that can be intervened manually. This feature may create new challenges for news reports: The authenticity of the news is challenged. As we all know, the core of news is truth, and the life of news is real. It is necessary to objectively report events on the ground. However, VR technology has created a virtual and realistic synthesis of the world, although there are images, but it is not a complete original environment. This world can be immersed in the audience, but this environment will be suspected, perhaps the news environment itself is "created" out of the scene. Is the VR+ news we see really true? This may be a key issue in the future.
(II) High costThe cost of VR news production is high and it can only be completed with certain technical support. The large amount of funds required and the long production process make it difficult to carry out large-scale production. Some VR videos take a few weeks to complete, but others take months and the production cycle is quite long.
(three) limited topicsIn current news reports with a strong sense of screen and strong visual impact, it is more suitable for VR technology; and in general, such as dynamic news or very abstract economic reports, it is not applicable to this technology. Therefore, the VR news currently available for reporting is very limited in its subject matter, and it is only applicable to news events related to interpretative, news, entertainment, sports events, or difficult-to-replicate news events.
Fourth, how to better integrate VR and news (A) insist on the content construction as a fundamentalThe unique content is the source of the media. Without unique content, advanced VR will only be a bright packaging. Each kind of news media must have a matching presentation style. Newspapers mainly use text and video videos mainly. Development to microblogs and WeChat requires short and lean texts. The same is true of VR. To combine VR's propagation characteristics and form, to process the content, match it with this new platform, and make it popular with the audience, so as to enable it to grasp the initiative of news dissemination on the battlefield.
(B) Attempt to cross-border integrationAt present, all walks of life promote "cross-border mix", actor cross-border music, singer cross-border sketches, cross-border sketches, and various entertainment forms that fully demonstrate the overall strength of an actor. Media communication is also a cross-border combination. To address Xie Ping’s greetings on the “two micro ends†of the People’s Daily, the “general secretary gives you a call†approach attracts readers, and the content can also be used in various new media. On the synchronous dissemination, such as various types of clients, WeChat public account, Weibo, and the Internet's cross-border operating platform, readers can also share. Without the mutual assistance of these media platforms, the People’s Daily, which is merely a paper media, cannot create such a miracle of communication. Therefore, in the process of integration with news, VR technology should also try to cross-border fusion of various media carriers, which will produce better communication results.
V. ConclusionFrom the advent of paper media, to the booming of radio, television, and the Internet, to the rise of VR technology, the development history of media technology is also the evolutionary history of media "immersiveness." The emergence of VR+ news has enriched the news coverage of traditional journalism. The future development of the media industry depends largely on the development of cutting-edge technologies. Although there are still some unresolved issues in the development of VR, in general, the "VR + News" model not only fits the direction of VR industry development, but also changes the distribution of news, and also the future of media development. Provides new ideas and development directions.