Carlos Rodriguez brings news to thousands of people in California’s Central Valley. Here’s all the technology behind his social media streaming business.
Panasonic HPX3100
Every news reporter needs a camera. For Rodriguez, that means using a top-of-the-line video camera built for professionals. This camera features 1920 x 1080 resolution imaging with 4:2:2 10-bit sampling, 24-bit audio in AVC-Intra 100/50 and a plethora of other attributes. While having a fancy, top-tier camera is optimal for broadcasting image, it isn’t the only option.
Teradek’s Cube
Rodriguez has been streaming with Teradek’s original Cube encoder since 2012. It enables him to broadcast to any social media platform of his choice (native or RTMP) and can stream online over wireless network, 3G/4G/LTE, or even mobile hotspot.
For mobile journalists like Rodriguez, the Cube is an attractive encoder for two reasons. First, at only 8 ounces, it is one of the most lightweight devices in the market for live streaming. This makes filming more efficient out in the field where mobility is important. Second, its 1080p/60fps streaming capabilities at up to 10Mbps makes it one of the most current technical encoders today.
Live:Air App
As a mobile journalist streaming directly to CDNs, Rodriguez’s content has typically consisted of commentating over unedited video. With the release of the Live:Air app for iPads, Rodriguez has been playing with the functions on his broadcasts. One of the best features is the ability to switch between multiple video feeds.
“If I’m at a location like a road incident and the official speaking doesn’t want to be live, I could record the video and use it later.”
This function enables journalists to record a feed on the spot and save it for broadcasting at a later time. It could be used as a small overlay on screen or replace the main screen entirely. Other features of the app include the ability to add graphic overlays on screen like broadcast titles or scoreboards for sports events, the flexibility in altering color balance, audio mixing and image editing.
Check out Live:Air features here.
CORE
The CORE is a cloud-based video manager that aggregates all video feeds and allows streaming to multiple CDNs at the same time. With CORE, Rodriguez is able to expand his outreach to several social media platforms at the same time. “I was streaming a deputy’s funeral and we used CORE to stream to multiple destinations. We had around 400,000 people watching from around the world!” Since every video feed can be controlled from one device, it makes managing the stream very simple for mobile journalists covering big events.
Check out the CORE system's website and start a free trial here.
Mobile journalism embodies the idea of being simplistic with your gear, and it really doesn’t take much to get started. With camera technology becoming smaller and more impressive, even larger news networks are making transitions to this new form of journalism.
To read about Carlos Rodriguez's journalism work, check out blog post here.