Are you addicted to the news lately? Here in the U.S., it’s election season which means that easy access to live news coverage is a must-have these days. There was a time when you could only get the news via TV, radio, or paper, but now the web offers a number of different ways to watch the news. Whether it’s your favorite news web site, up-to-the-minute blog coverage, streaming video, citizen journalism, or even desktop apps like Livestation, there are a million ways to feed your news addiction when you go online. Today, you can add one more app to your news-gathering arsenal: an Adobe AIR app delivering 12 live streams from FOX News.
Even if FOX News isn’t your cup of tea, the FOX News app is worth a look. Through this desktop video player, you have access to 12 simultaneous live streams from FOX News. However, it should be noted that all the streams are not necessarily live all the time. Sometimes you’ll only see a handful, but what they deliver is compelling. The reason this app is interesting is because it delivers the news live and uncut – it’s the raw footage, not edited and produced the way you see on TV. You’re getting the live feed, and sometimes that means you’re seeing the ground and people’s feet as the cameraman adjusts the camera or moves to a different location. Maybe you’ll catch the reporter fixing her hair. Or maybe you’ll just see the footage being filmed by the helicopter, with no voiceover. Yet all this is what makes the app great – it feels like you’re really there and getting the scoop.
In addition to the video feeds, there’s also a live feed from FOX News Talk Radio. Another nice feature is the breaking news alerts. When the app is minimized, a small window will pop up from time to time when there’s breaking news. The pop-up window will show the headline and the video. If you want to tune in, just click on it. If you ignore it, it will disappear in a moment or two. If that feature annoys you or you just need a break from distractions, you can easily turn it off from the Alert Settings in the app.
The last notable feature of the AIR app is the sharing feature. If you catch a video that you want to share with your friends, you can simply click the “Share” button to send them the video via email. Your friend receives a link to the video stream. The link delivers them to a page on the FOX News web site where they can watch the stream live.
If you want to check out this app yourself, you can download it from here. You will need to have Adobe AIR installed in order to install it.
