Media

The latest Chrome beta for Android integrates Google Translate support directly into the browser, just like it does with its desktop counterpart. Originally posted at News - Business Tech

Who needs Miracle-Gro when you've got Twitter? The Digital Capabilities garden responds to live tweets by revealing hidden areas of exotic foliage. Originally posted at Crave

The media company is reportedly keeping things cool with another big bid -- this time for online video.

Google is reportedly going into the cellular business in sub-Saharan Africa and Southeast Asia in an effort to connect more people to the Internet. Originally posted at News - Mobile

The company is expected to complete its separation on June 28, with publishing assets in one company and most film and television units in another.

As Pac-Man celebrated its 33rd birthday this week, the hit game has etched a place in the global lexicon as a cross-cultural icon.

The Guardian is putting its digital house in order, announcing today the new domain theguardian.com. The new URL will be a universal address, bringing together the US site (guardiannews.com), the UK version (guardian.co.uk), the mobile site (m.guardian.co.uk) and the forthcoming Australian edition. In a conversation earlier this week with Janine Gibson, editor of the US edition of the Guardian, said the new URL is a way to tie together all of the Guardian’s operations. “Having one url, one domain, which is the global home of The Guardian, is the most sensible way to grow and expand and make it clear that’s what we are,” said Gibson. Gibson said it’s a sign the Guardian is no longer just a printed paper in the UK, but a company with a digital emphasis and global reach. She said the US is a good example, as the American edition had more than 13 million unique visitors in April, a 38 percent increase over 2012.

In response to some recent events, the Digital Media Law Project took a look today at some landmark legal cases in the history of media protection. They argue that rather than laws that protect journalists, which can be hard to define on an individual level, we need laws that protect anyone engaging in the act of journalism. [P]rofessional journalists now share the information ecology with a much wider array of members of the public who care about particular communities and issues. These individuals can often speak from deep personal knowledge and identify important information that others might miss. And from the Rodney King incident forward, there has been recognition that sometimes informing the public is not about education and professional commitment, but about being in the right place at the right time. Institutional media organizations still play an important role in conveying information gathered by individuals to the public at large, but the Internet provides many other paths to an audience. The citizens involved in bringing this information to the public don’t need to be called “journalists” for the information they possess to have value (although these people are entitled to respect and are free to argue their right to that title). Regardless of names, the manner in which this information of public importance is gathered and conveyed is entitled to no less protection than traditional newsgathering.

It's the rare commercial that you wish went on longer. But such is the case with this 30-second Dodge Charger spot advertising the Chrysler brand's tie-in with the groundbreaking TV show/video game Defiance. Set in 2046, the Syfy show is a futuristic drama set in a city called Defiance, which sits atop the ruins of St. Louis, Mo. Seven unique alien races have arrived on Earth, a development that has thrown humans for a bit of a loop. But not Dodge. As you see in the ad, from Wieden + Kennedy, which begins in the present day and continues to 2046, the Dodge Charger is so tough and versatile that it manages to survive the apocalypse, the invasion and lots of frantic driving by alien-pecked humans. "Only the defiant survive," says the on-screen copy at the end. The show's hero, Joshua Nolan (Grant Bowler), drives a couple of Dodge Chargers, which have been modified a bit to fit the futuristic story line. The cars were directly integrated into the story in this past Monday's episode, the sixth of the first season, becoming major characters. And while there's an element of goofiness in having modern-day vehicles drive through Armageddon and live to tell the tale, there's a gritty, cool factor here too—achieved largely by the nice juxtaposition of the dark, hectic visuals and the soulful, stylish song "Freedom" by Anthony Hamilton and Elayna Boynton (which you may recognize from Django Unchained). Ads for video games often pair violence and beauty in this way especially weel—here, the fictional premise lets an automaker do the same. And no wonder it feels like a video-game spot. Defiance is also a massively multiplayer online video game. The show and the game feature interconnected worlds and story lines—the show impacts the game, and the game influences the show. And while the show features the Charger, the game incorporates the Dodge Challenger into the mix. Dodge and W+K have glimpsed the future before. Maybe we could use the Dart's time machine to go back and make this Charger spot a :60? CREDITS Clients: Dodge, Syfy Project: Dodge Charger | Defiance Agency: Wieden + Kennedy, Portland, Ore. Creative Directors: Aaron Allen / Michael Tabtabai / Kevin Jones Copywriter: Smith Henderson Art Director: Susan Land Executive Producer: Corey Bartha Account Team: Thomas Harvey / Lani Reichenbach / Ramon Cruz Project Manager: Tamar Berk Executive Creative Directors: Joe Staples / Susan Hoffman Agency Executive Producer: Ben Grylewicz Agency Producer: Jennie Lindstrom / Kirsten Acheson Business Affairs Director: Amber Lavender Production Company: MJZ Director: Nicolai Fuglsig Executive Producer: Emme Wilcockson Line Producer: James Blom Director of Photography: Robert Elswit Editorial Company: Rock, Paper Scissors Editor: Stewart Reeves Post Producer: Alexandra Zickerick Post Executive Producer: Carol Lynn Weaver VFX Company: Method VFX Supervisor: Ben Walsh Executive Producer: Stephanie Gilgar Head of 2D/Flame Artist: Patrick Ferguson Producer: Jason Cohon Coordinator: Nicole Saccardi Nuke Artists: Alex Gitler / Grady Campbell Matte Painting: Roger Kupelian / Rich Mahon / Zach Christian FX Artist: Travis Harkleroad Tracking: Apirak Kamjan / Rachan Chirattanakornkul Roto: Kenneth Liu / Scott Crafford Music+Sound Company: Stimmung Sound Designer: Gus Koven Producer: Ceinwyn Clark Mix Company: Lime Studios Mixer: Mark Meyuhas Producer: Jessica Locke

The next flavor of the mobile OS has been spotted again, this time actually running on a device. Originally posted at Crave