Technology has created a profound opportunity for users to manipulate content and determine how stories are told. Hypertelling is the term we use to describe this. Hypertelling thrives on content, presumes interaction and manipulation, anticipates change and modification and reflects the will of the user. From simple memes to virtual reality, hypertelling changes the way stories are created, the way we experience them and possibly even, our common cultural narrative.

 

Speaker: Mike Yapp, The ZOO Americas

For 80 years, Consumer Reports has been known for its independent, expert product testing and reviews. Fewer know the organization for its powerful policy and mobilization work, which helps support its mission of building a fairer, safer, healthier marketplace for all consumers.

 

With so many competitors now filling the online product review space, including users themselves, CR is at a pivotal point it its life cycle. This fall, the brand will reintroduce itself to consumers with a new look, membership program and an expanded editorial mission that uses storytelling - both in-depth and short form - as well as story collection from consumers themselves to engage the public more deeply. The brand has begun tackling systemic consumer issues  - education debt reform, patient safety, privacy, a healthy food system -  through investigative work core to its DNA but expressed editorially in new ways.

 

What are the challenges, risks and opportunities - and what kinds of new resources and pivoting is required?

 

How do you tell a story in politics that brakes through the news cycle and actually reaches human beings? At IJR we have applied ourselves to that question and learned some things in 2016.

 

The digital media landscape is changing every day, and it’s harder than ever to make content stand out. Articles are being read on Facebook and Google AMP instead of on publisher websites. Readers are scrolling through articles on phones instead of clicking through them on desktops. And people are engaging with new story formats, from traditional longform features to 140-character tweets to viral videos and photo-heavy listicles.