AP has been experimenting with virtual reality 360-degree videos as a new medium for storytelling. Here are some stories I edited together with Autopano stitching softwares and Mettle premiere plugins-
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Videos
AP Bangkok summer internship
What we do at SJNN
Uncovering injustice through in-depth, community focused reporting. The Social Justice News Nexus explores issues of crucial impact in our communities through innovative reporting, critical reflection and building connections between student reporters and professional journalists. This promo video encapsulates what we have produced in the 2014-15 cycle.
Read more "What we do at SJNN"From the Clinics to the Jail: The Mental Health Care Crisis in Chicago
Story by Penny Yi Wang and Rachel White for Social Justice News Nexus blog
Three years ago, Chicago closed half its public mental health clinics, a crucial source of care for low-income people, Blacks and Latinos. With a lack of other options, the Cook County Jail is known as the region’s biggest mental health care provider. Thousands of people with mental illness are housed there, often because of crimes of survival related to their illness. Jail officials and advocates struggle to address the problem.
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Mental health advocates march to demand rights
Mental health advocates marched in the Chicago winter chill on Feb 5th. The organizing team is part of the Mental Health Movement, which works with both mental health service providers and customers to lobby and improve the state of mental health services in Chicago.
Almost three years ago, the city closed six public mental health clinics. The march, which took place while the last mayoral debate was going on at ABC 7 studio downtown, aimed to educate candidates about the value of public mental health clinics to low income and minority communities.
Advocates also proposed their vision for Chicago’s public mental health services in the next years. They urged the city council to open or reopen two clinics each year for four years to establish a safety net for the mentally ill across the city.
“It would only cost each taxpayer 25 cents a month to keep the clinics open,” said N’Dana Carter, an activist with the Movement. “It is affordable and desperately needed service.”
In addition, members of the march demanded greater educational effort from the Public Health Department to let people know that there are accessible resources in their communities when they are feeling depressed or anxious.
[A version of this blog post is on Social Justice News Nexus; More photos on flickr]
Read more "Mental health advocates march to demand rights"Peer-to-peer lending sees exponential growth
By Penny Yi Wang for Medill News Service
In the past few years, consumers disillusioned with tight-fisted banks have jumped on the peer-to-peer lending bandwagon.
When the Great Recession hit, banks suffered big losses as borrowers defaulted on loans they had taken out during the economy’s long upturn. In response, lenders have drastically tightened their lending requirements. As a result, many borrowers with anything less than stellar credit now can’t qualify for traditional bank loans.
But non-wealthy Americans still need loans from time to time. And as bankers have turned stingy, borrowers have increasingly turned to alternative online lending platforms, such as Lending Club and Prosper Marketplace.
SpotHero shifts into high gear with parking app
Parking in the city is never easy, but SpotHero, a Chicago-based technology company, has found a way to help commuters. The start-up’s mobile apps find discounted parking spots in real time and allow users to pay online or in the app. The company, which launched in 2011 with three co-founders, now has 30 employees. SpotHero has just added four new cities to its roster of seven.
Shot on an iPhone 6. Music: Batty McFaddin by Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Read more "SpotHero shifts into high gear with parking app"Qatar driving culture explained
One of the first things expats need to get used to when they first come to Qatar is a distinct driving style some people have on the road. Where did it come from? No one seems to have an answer. Perhaps this audio clip might be able to help a little.
A Qatari perspective on driving culture in Qatar–
(Originally published on Qatar Living)
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by penny w & amna a
Los Angeles New Wave International Film Festival, Spring 2014
Honorable Mention, Best Cinematography, Best Editing under Short Documentary category
Read more "Qadr | Destiny"Thangka Memories
Lhasa, an old and mysterious city and the capital of Tibet, is one of the most popular tourist destinations in recent years.
Tibet has a total population of three million residents. However, one can easily observe on the street that Tibetans have become minority in their own city due to the presence of Chinese merchants and tourists.
With the growing number of Chinese merchants in the region, consumer culture of today is encroaching on the legacy of the ancient history and unique religious practice of Tibet.
One of the most poignant expression of spirituality is art. Tibet’s proudest religious art form is Thangka, paintings of the Buddha on canvas. Thangka is going through rather aggressive changes as the market landscape is centering on the influx of tourists. But there are still Tibetan artists who try to resist the encroachment and struggle to hold on to their tradition.
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Penny Yi Wang 