Collaborative WWI Centennial Project Brings Forgotten Stories From the Black Press on African Americans in the WWI Era to a Worldwide Audience Through VR Technology

Forgotten stories like these are being made available to students nationwide through immersive storytelling technology thanks to a collaborative partnership with Google Expeditions, the Friends of the Victory Memorial and the West Virginia University Reed College of Media Innovation Center.

This project, “WWI Through the Eyes of the Chicago Defender,” brings history to life through virtual reality. The VR project takes viewers on a tour of WWI-era United States as seen through the eyes of the nation’s most influential black weekly newspaper at that time.

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The project has been commissioned for Google Expeditions, a product that allows teachers to take their classes on virtual field trips, immersing students in experiences that bring abstract concepts to life, brings virtual objects into the classroom, and gives students a deeper understanding of the world beyond the classroom. The “WWI Through the Eyes of the Chicago Defender” expedition became a “pioneer” beta partner in 2016.

Source: Collaborative WWI Centennial Project Brings Forgotten Stories From the Black Press on African Americans in the WWI Era to a Worldwide Audience Through VR Technology