Cronkite School to launch Innovation Day at ASU

Arizona State University’s Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication this month will host its first-ever expo of new technologies with the potential to improve journalism.

Cronkite Innovation Day, open to all ASU students, faculty, staff and the public, will feature hands-on activities with indoor drones, telepresence robots, wearable technologies, 3-D printers, virtual reality experiences and more.

The inaugural event will include 16 interactive stations, where students can try technologies and enter contests for the best ideas of how they can be used by journalists.

Innovation Day is scheduled from 5 to 8 p.m. Jan. 20 at the Cronkite School on the ASU Downtown Phoenix campus.

Participating companies include B&H Photo Video, Apple, DODOCase, Double Robotics, I Am Cardboard, RedPost, Sennheiser and VSN Mobil. In addition, several ASU schools and programs will have demonstrations, including the EdPlus at ASU, the Herberger Institute for Design and the Arts, the Ira A. Fulton Schools of Engineering and the School of Earth and Space Exploration.

“Reading about new technology is one thing. But trying it yourself in a fun atmosphere is a better way to understand,” said Eric Newton, who as innovation chief drives cutting-edge ideas at the Cronkite School and Cronkite News, the school’s multiplatform daily news operation. “Since Cronkite News is both a quality news service and a testbed for new ideas, we’re always looking forward.”

Cronkite School and ASU faculty and staff will provide information and instruction about the technologies. Attractions include:

• Fly a Drone: Experience flying an indoor drone, and how it can impact news coverage.

• Drive a Bot: See how telepresence robots can change communication in journalism and beyond.

• Experience Virtual Reality: Discover how to transform a smartphone into a virtual reality experience and test out various VR apps developed by media companies.

• Try a 3-D Printer: Check out a 3-D printer from the Ira A. Fulton Schools of Engineering, and learn how it is transforming industries and everyday life.

• Wear Your Media: Try out a variety of wearable technologies, including Apple Watches, Fitbits and Thync, a device co-developed by an ASU professor that helps create either calm or energy.

• Demo Reporting Apps: Experience more than a dozen mobile reporting apps that are reshaping how journalists report from the field.

• Discover the Power of Sound: Test out parabolic microphones, which can pick up sounds from great distances, as well as other cutting-edge audio equipment.

Innovation Day will include livestreams, mobile news reporting demonstrations and more.

The event is free to attend, and no registration is required. It will take place in the First Amendment Forum on the second floor of the Cronkite School.