November 22, 2017 at the Kazakh National University named after Al-Farabi solemn opening of the multimedia laboratory "Immersive Journalism." Immersive journalism is a new digital platform for the transmission of news, reports and narratives in the virtual reality system, is new in the media of Kazakhstan and requires studying the influence on the audience.

The creation of the laboratory will allow to conduct complex studies of theoretical and practical problems of immersive journalism at the intersection of natural and human sciences: mathematical and computer modeling, computer physics, programming, virtual technology, media design, psychology, sociology and journalism. The laboratory staff will conduct a series of psychological and field sociological studies to study the positive and negative effects of new media. Immersive journalism increases the responsibility of a journalist in respect of professional ethics, as it has a powerful psychological impact. It is planned to model the content for the virtual narrative with the original design decision, animation, 3D video clips with themes of Kazakhstan content on such subjects as "Semipalatinsk polygon", "Almaty - save the city from the earthquake", "Sel in Almaty", "Climate change" "Glaciers Alatau", etc. In addition, scientific and methodological material will be collected for the training of journalists of Kazakhstan in the field of immersive journalism.

Scientists of the laboratory will conduct a critically-comparative analysis of models of studying virtual reality and the use of immersive journalism, an analysis of the experience of foreign universities and practices of such media as CNN, The New York Times, The Guardian, etc. In this academic year, 18 graduate students of the Faculty of Journalism of KazNU passed a remote University of Austin, Texas, USA "Immersive journalism. A virtual reality". The created laboratory has scientific contacts with the Virtual Human Interaction Laboratory of Stanford University, USA.

Representatives of the School of Communication and Journalism of the University of Leicester, Great Britain, as well as students of faculties and departments of journalism of universities of Almaty will take part in the presentation of the new laboratory. During the presentation, participants will get acquainted with examples of immersive journalism and will feel the effect of "immersion" in virtual reality with the help of new technologies that will help to experience and feel what is happening. The laboratory has the latest equipment necessary for demonstration and research.

Rector, academician G.Mutanov believes that "the creation of a laboratory using virtual reality technology at the country's largest university is an important contribution to the implementation of the state program Digital Kazakhstan, increases the effectiveness and competitiveness of Kazakhstani journalists." The head of the laboratory, G. Galina Ibraeva, professor of the Faculty of Journalism, notes that "the laboratory's research will make a significant contribution to the development of new areas of modern journalism in the country, will create the basis for information security and psychological comfort of obtaining information on new digital media."

Place and date: November 22, 2017, from 11 o'clock in the Innovation Academy of Samsung KazNU named after al-Farabi (the corpus between the physicotechnical and the mechanics and mathematics faculties). Arrival from the Palace of Students named after UA Dzholdasbekov to the parking lot of the physical-technical and mechanic-mathematical faculties. There is a second car park - opposite the Palace of Students.

Participants: Pro-rectors, deans, head of the department, doctoral students and undergraduates of the Faculty of Mechanics and Mathematics, Physico-Technical, Faculty of Philosophy and Political Science and the Faculty of Journalism, visiting vice-rector for international relations and three employees of the University of Leicester, Great Britain.

Accreditation:

on the phone +7 (727) 377-32-64, mob. 7 701 222 7772

or by e-mail: Galiya.Ibrayeva@kaznu.kz

Cont. face:

Ibraeva Galiya Zhunusovna

+7 701 222 7772

Aynura Muldasheva +7 777 629 6100