ORLANDO, Fla. – WKMG-TV News 6, the Graham Media Group-owned CBS affiliate in Orlando Florida, continues to transform the landscape of news viewing with the introduction of “News 6/360.” Presented by the station’s website, ClickOrlando.com, News 6/360 is the first-of-its-kind newscast shot and produced entirely in 360 degrees. This new, interactive, immersive experience is designed to be viewer friendly, easy to use and will keep viewers coming back for each new newscast.
Using a single state-of-the-art 360-degree camera placed in the center of the News 6 studio, there is no control room to switch between multiple cameras and no floor director to queue talent. News 6/360 is a real, intimate experience in true storytelling, which allows the viewer to be present and interact with the content and the anchors by moving the camera with the touch of a finger or click of a mouse.
Hosted by News 6 anchor Ginger Gadsden and News 6 digital reporter Brianna Volz, viewers may notice them holding notes. That’s because there is limited teleprompter for them to read. Ginger and Brianna interact with each other and the viewers off the cuff, giving the newscast a high-energy, less formal and conversational tone.
“Harnessing the power of new technology isn’t an option, it’s a must in today’s world. Central Floridians expect to get the news that is important to them and their neighborhood whenever they want and however they choose to engage,” News 6 News Director Allison McGinley said.
“News 6 prides itself on being an innovator in creating and providing new ways for Central Floridians to view local news and locally produced entertainment content,” said News 6 Vice President and General Manager Jeff Hoffman. “It is important that we serve our community with important news and information any time and in every way we can. As people choose a variety of ways to receive their information, we want to make sure they know we are in those spaces with accurate, fact-checked and compelling information.”
“From the beginning of the newscast to the end, viewers can move the camera to see what they want to see, when they want to see it,” said co-host Ginger Gadsden. “Because of that, we put a lot of time and effort into deciding what kinds of stories would compel viewers to want to interact with the newscast, new ways of telling those stories, how to showcase the video and even the graphics in an effective way. I am excited for our viewers to check this new extension of News 6 and I am proud to be part of such a new way of providing news to our neighbors.”
News 6/360 will release a new episode every week. Viewers can watch News 6/360 on their Android phones by going to ClickOrlando.com or their News 6 App. iPhone users can use the YouTube App and search ClickOrlando.com. You can also use VR goggles to watch the newscast.
News 6 and ClickOrlando,com have proven to be one of the most pioneering television and digital outlets for our Central Florida community. In 2017, News 6 and ClickOrlando.com launched “ClickO on the Go,” a 90-second newscast that uses today's top social platforms — specifically Instagram and Snapchat — to target a younger audience. The weekday series brings the news and weather our viewers need to the places they already are. It does so in a simple, yet engaging manner by being extremely conversational and packing the information into two-minute vertical video segments that drive users to ClickOrlando.com.
In an unprecedented digital and broadcast event, WKMG News 6 produced more than 100 hours of livestream content for ClickOrlando.com during the station’s annual coverage of the Lake Eola “Fireworks at the Fountain” on July 4, 2019. This online streaming project harnessed live video from more than 25 different camera angles and sources, allowing online viewers to be in the “Director’s Chair” and select from a variety of angles, including the first-ever streams directly from mobile phones of reporters and producers in the field.
The News 6 newsroom dedicated dozens of people to the event with new technology, producing a 10-hour, digital-first broadcast for the ClickOrlando.com website and News 6 OTT App (available on Roku, Amazon Fire TV, Apple TV and more).