Instead of using a traditional split screen for live coverage on election night, CNN decided to mix it up by taking a big risk – using holograms. Their reporters and interviewees were filmed live using a green screen and 35 cameras positioned in a circle to get a full image of their bodies. The live image was then sent to CNN’s studios so it appeared that Wolf Blitzer, Anderson Cooper, and the rest of the anchors were talking with the correspondents standing right next to them.

Of course the images weren’t perfect – it wasn’t like you’d think the reporter was really standing there. There were some outlines, fuzzy blips and digital clues – plus they sort of appeared to be floating. Reporter Jessica Yellin had a very Casper the Friendly Ghost issue going on with her feet – or lack thereof.

3-D hologram technology made its way from Tatooine to CNN’s studio last night, enabling the network to “beam in” correspondent Jessica Yellin and hip-hop star will.i.am for virtual studio appearances with Wolf Blitzer. And boy, is it cool. Here’s how the hologram effect works, as we described it in yesterday’s Election Day gadgets story:

The hologram didn’t actually appear in the CNN studio. Instead, it’s an effect visible only to TV viewers thanks to a massive array of cameras and some really impressive real-time video processing. To make it work, the virtual correspondents were sequestered in quiet rooms and “scanned” through motion capture and camera-tracking telemetry. Each VR-enabled room had between 35 and 44 small, fixed cameras, which combined to take in a 360-degree image of the person. The studio also had 20 PCs crunching the data.

Once collected, the data was processed by graphics software, which synchronized the angles needed to produce an accurate render that matched up with what the main CNN cameras were showing. In order to “see” each other and gauge their physical presence within the virtual studio, Mr. Blitzer and the correspondents directed their gaze towards at a 37-inch plasma screen (in regular 2-D) to make sure they didn’t walk through their ghostly friends.

The hologram effect proved to be a technical success. The video-feed rendering of the human correspondents looked accurate, with precise and realistic perspective angles. It was especially impressive when the camera moved in real time, making it seem as if the person was really there.

[From Wired]

Several websites are pointing out that the holograms aren’t technically holograms. For them to be real holograms the images would have to be beamed into the actual studios, and that’s what the viewer sees. Instead Wolf Blitzer was talking to a red dot and the image of the reporter was visible only to the viewers. Thus the holograms are actually tomograms, “which are images that are captured from all sides, reconstructed by computers, then displayed on screen” according to CBC.

It’s a fascinating premise and I like that CNN is experimenting with new technology and mixing things up. I found it pretty distracting to watch, but that’s probably just because it’s brand new. According to a CNN producer many interviews may be conducted like this in the next five or ten years. It probably wouldn’t be so distracting when people got used to it.

I also can’t help but wonder about the cost. That whole arrangement sounds freakishly expensive, but no one will confirm the price. The setup is huge and the point is to use it for distant interviews, which means it’s got to travel. It seems pretty inefficient in that sense, especially with the cost of fuel. And then moving around such a large team of people to run it. I imagine CNN could lose a ton of money on it. It’ll be interesting to see what happens with the technology in the next couple of years, but for now it appears to have been just a one night phenomenon.