Digiday: Washington Post Goes Vertical

Posted March 02, 2016

Share To

 

  TweetEmail

Video is taking over the Internet.  Traditional media outlets must try to pivot to the world of video or will fail.  Taking note of this trend, The Washington Post has embraced video and has shown some real promise.

Ricardo Bilton of Digiday writes on the video that the Washington Post produces and its foray into vertical video. Vertical video may rub some people the wrong way, but for the Washington Post, it may be the future.

Bilton writes:

On Monday, the Post published a minute-long vertical video about the importance of Super Tuesday, which was told with animated graphics and meant to be watched with the sound off. The video, produced by politics video editor Sarah Parnass, is the latest in a series of “Know Its,” the Post’s name for its vertical video explainers. Previous entries have focused on aspects of the presidential election (“What to expect in the New Hampshire primary”) and frequently Googled questions about the candidates (“How tall is Jeb Bush?” and “What is Donald Trump’s net worth?”). The format is reminiscent of the vertical videos from many of the publishers on Snapchat Discover, including Vox and The Wall Street Journal, which are similarly heavy on animation.

The Washington Post’s other efforts around vertical video have been more ambitious. In January, it published “The Waypoint,” a mobile-optimized documentary focused on refugees braving a dangerous journey into Europe. The Washington Post also launched its own vertical video player last fall.

WAPO'S VERTICAL VIDEO

Read the full post here.