Two UBC Journalism faculty members will be presenting on social media and virtual reality at SXSW 2015, a festival known for recognizing innovation and excellence in music, film, media and interactive technology.
Teaching social media
Hermida will be presenting on social media education at SXSWedu next March.
The panel, “From #LOL to #KPI: How to Teach Social Media,” is being organized by Hootsuite.
“Educators are in a tricky place – teaching students something we assume they already know,” said Kirsten Bailey, director of Hootsuite University.
This is why Hootsuite is bringing together a panel of three of the top social media professors from across North America.
Bailey says these professors will be able to help other educators learn to how teach social media. The goal of the panel is to determine how to turn “digitally savvy students into digitally savvy professionals.”
Hermida is seasoned in helping students translate their social media skills into a professional setting.
In 2012, he co-launched an innovative course on social media that brings together journalism and business students. The award-winning course, “Decoding Social Media,” provides students with real-world experiences by partnering them with media organizations across Canada.
In October, his book on the impact of social media, “Tell Everyone: Why We Share and Why It Matters,” was published by DoubleDay Canada.
Virtual reality in journalism
Newest faculty member, Taylor Owen, will also be presenting at next year’s SXSW Interactive festival.
Owen is the organizer and a presenter on a panel in the interactive category titled, “Virtual Reality Journalism.”
The panel promises to discuss how virtual reality can move past the gaming industry and be used for a new form of immersive and interactive journalism.
Owen, Research Director at the Tow Center for Digital Journalism, will demo a new collaborative virtual reality research project that he has been working on with the Columbia School of Journalism, Vice News and the Secret Location. He recently was awarded a prestigious Knight Prototype Fund grant to innovate live-action journalism utilizing virtual reality.
Panelists will discuss lessons learned, challenges and the future of virtual reality journalism.
To learn more about Owen’s virtual reality project, check out his interview with CBC’s The Current.
