News Wheel is an iOS app that explores the poetics of ever changing news headlines. It begins as a static disk divided into nine sections each representing a different news source. Tapping anywhere on the screen causes the wheel to spin. Another tap stops the wheel and suddenly a headline in one of nine pre-selected colors appears on the screen. This playful interface invites users to start and stop the wheel eventually filling the screen with a collage of current headlines. Individual words can be deleted and repositioned so users can create their own poems from this content. In addition, dragging one's finger across the screen creates an animated chain of fragmented and poetic text derived from today's headline news. Each time the application is launched, a different headline randomly appears on the screen from one of the nine different news sources. The interface is a creative and poetic way to view, juxtapose and interpret world events.


Credits:
Concept/Design: Jody Zellen
Programming: Z Sweedyk

This project was funded in part though a 2016 Artists Fellowship grant from the City of Santa Monica.

Instructions:
Tap the wheel or Spin to spin the wheel
Tap again to reveal a headline from today's news
Drag a word to move it
Tap a word to delete it
Press and hold a word then drag to create a chain of text
Tap Save to save screenshot to camera roll


Sources:
Asian Age
Guardian
Los Angeles Times
National
New York Daily News
New York Times
Philadelphia Inquirer
Wall Street Journal
Washington Post