While trying out AR apps, I decided to return to the AR News Apps to see if they had any coverage of the 2016 Election. As it happens, they had quite a bit. The âDaily 360âł section of the NYT VR app had a few selections to choose from, namely the âCast your ballot.â
The language of the videos always invite the viewer to âjoin inâ or âstep insideâ as though the viewer is literally transported to the space. This is, generally speaking, the intended effect of these 360 videos, but Iâm not sure I experienced it in the way the NYT intended.
I could never get the hang of google cardboard. I might be holding it wrong or looking into it cross-eyed, but images in the viewer appear to me as amalgamations of content. For example, pairs of people may have looked like a singular, two headed mutant. For a clearer image Iâd try and cover one of my eyes, although it was hardly a permanent solution.
This effect persisted for the âcast your ballotâ video, but in a way that completely caught me off guard. In the video, the viewer is put inside a voting booth (specifically booths in Ohio, North Carolina, and Florida, where âthe race is tight!â) as disembodied sound-clips of Trump and Clinton play. The app wants you to imagine being an undecided voter at the polls, their mind racing as they remember the rhetoric of the candidates.
But my failure to use Google Cardboard was as notable as ever. I saw the rows of booths, the ballot in front of me, and various other sights all grotesquely smashed together. The voices of Trump and Clinton were all around me, and in my disorientation I kept look around, hoping to find my bearings.
When I turned, I found myself in another booth, in another state. As the video promised, I was now put in a different place (North Carolina, I think). This didnât exactly help with trying to ground myself. If anything, any effect of disorientation the video was going for I probably felt tenfold.
In any event, I was pleasantly surprised to find election coverage on the NYT AR news app. I wasnât expecting much from the app, but the experience was definitely one of the more memorable ones I had with AR (even if it was partially caused by misuse of the Cardboard). Iâve mostly been critical of AR apps in recent weeks, as they often feel shallow or gimmicky (most feel like theyâre selling you something). 360 degrees videos of new stories is admittedly also a bit of a gimmick, but at least it feels interesting.
For other election-related videos on the NYT AR app, Iâd recommend checking âCast your Ballot,â âInside the Trump Victory Party,â and âRide Along with âSouls to the Pollsââ