CNN has become the first major news organization to integrate wearable technology into its reporting stream by letting Google Glass Explorers report breaking news through its iReport platform.
Google Glass Explorers have been assigned with a new task of reporting breaking news to CNN through its citizen journalist portal iReport, of course at their own will. The major news organization is the first to adapt the growing wearable technology as a means to gather reports from citizen journalists. With the help of Google Glass explorers, CNN is aiming to get first-hand reports of real-time incidents, photos and videos.
CNN's iReport is a portal where citizen journalists can sign up to contribute stories to the news site. The concept has been highly popular among people around the world, it reported 1 million registered reporters in 2011. The project, which was first started in 2006, helped CNN cover major events including the London bombings in 2005 and the Nigerian protests in late 2011, among others, ZDNET reports. And by expanding the portal's support to Google Glass, CNN is looking at bring the convenience of reporting news as it happens by instantly capturing content behind the Glass' camera.
The Google Glass support for iReport is currently being tested and is limited to audiences in the U.S. The expansion of the project will likely reach other users when it successfully completes the test phase and when Google brings its pricey eyewear to the people across the world.
"From an iReport standpoint, making it easier for people to upload iReports and share stories with CNN is key for us," CNN iReport editor Katie Hawkins-Gaar wrote in an email statement to ZDNET. "The Google Glass functionality is part of that. We're also focused on better integration with social networks like Instagram, where countless people are sharing amazing images and stories every day."
Interested in reporting news to CNN directly through your Google Glass? Head over to CNN's authorization page to get started.
Once CNN completes its authorization procdure, users can link the iReport profile and manage the settings. A separate share option "CNN iReport" will appear for all the photos and videos captured with the Google Glass, Hawkins-Gaar wrote in an official blog post, Wednesday.
