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issue 1

The Immersive Impact Review is a hybrid journalistic and academic magazine examining immersive media’s strive for social impact. This first issue, “Value(s) in Practice: Impact and Sustainability in XR,” opens up the question of value and values in immersive media. How do we measure and demonstrate social impact? How do we justify costs and tradeoffs in immersive vs. more traditional media?  Enjoy digging into these questions in a array of stories, from microfinance VR to journalism's evolving code of XR ethics. Enjoy.

issue 1 | spring 2026

Value(s) in
Practice

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How presentation fads and inconvenient truths inspired the Review.

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invitation

Michael Epstein is the founding principal of Walking Cinema and the Managing Editor of the Immersive Impact Review.

Earthrise, taken on December 24, 1968, by Apollo 8 astronaut William Anders.

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A media scholar examines the value of “Cultural XR” as it struggles to be experienced by audiences beyond festivals.

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provocation

Dr. Michael Golembewski is an award winning interactive design and scholar in the field of XR authoring and sustainability based in southern Massachusetts, USA.

The Time Before, as presented at the 2025 Venice Film Festival. Photograph by Michael Golembewski.

build the immersive community

Join educators, creators, researchers, and industry partners collaborating to advance immersive media and experiences through shared research, programming, and real-world impact. Monthly online meetup open to all. 

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Ethnographic observations across ten newsrooms and interviews with 100 audience members on a quest for shared XR ethics.

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research

Ioanna Georgia Eskiadi is a Ph.D. candidate at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki in Greece. She studies immersive journalism and its evolving ethical guidelines.

Image of flooding in Western Germany from The Guardian's "At least 58 dead in Germany as heavy rains bring catastrophic flooding," Philip Oterman, July 15, 2021.

Rather listen to the articles?

the Review needs you!

If you’re reading the Review you probably have some writing skills, projects you’re working on, and/or insights you’d like to share. Submit an article idea for the next issue! 

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A 360° virtual field trip of a Kenyan agribusiness was tested with impact investors to see whether immersive context could accelerate due diligence when site visits aren't feasible.

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research

by Nkateko Nicole Langa, Nora Hanke-Louw, Nathaniel Peterson, and Caroline Musau

What Happened When We Put a Kenyan Agribusiness in Virtual Reality

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VR project Screenshot of female factory workers at Nyota Limited (Albacoxe Productions, 2024.)

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How presentation fads and inconvenient truths inspired the Review.

MichaelEpstein.png

invitation

Michael Epstein is the founding principal of Walking Cinema and the Managing Editor of the Immersive Impact Review. 

Earthrise, taken on December 24, 1968, by Apollo 8 astronaut William Anders.

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What happened when the Charlotte Symphony Orchestra moved musicians off the stage and into nightclubs, neighborhoods, and immersive venues—and what it revealed about who orchestras actually serve.

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case study

Mical Hutson spent more than a decade as a senior leader inside performing arts institutions — including as VP of Marketing and Audience Development at Charlotte Symphony Orchestra.

The Charlotte Symphony Orchestra performs Become Ocean at Blume Studios. March 1, 2025. Photo credit: Genesis Photography.

Want more articles like these?

If you enjoyed these articles, be sure check out our related content for even more insights and information from our community.

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Editor Amy Carleton explores how we receive immersive experiences in community. She also helps tee up the second call for submissions for the Review.

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invitation

Amy Carleton, Ph.D. (Comparative Media Studies/Writing, MIT) is editor of the Immersive Impact Review.

Quilt Shanty, a 2026 project from artists Emily Quandahl and Madeline Cochran. Photo by Amy Carleton

issue 1 | spring 2026

the Immersive Impact Review is

proudly supported by

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Agog: The Immersive Media Institute is a philanthropic organization founded by Chip Giller and Wendy Schmidt dedicated to helping creators and nonprofit leaders use extended reality to imagine and build a more connected, just, and compassionate world. Agog operates as a field builder and creative partner, supporting immersive storytellers whose work addresses urgent social and environmental challenges.

 

Agog supports the Immersive Impact Review in expanding access to immersive media for social good, pairing approachable storytelling with deeper exploration of the field.

The Immersive Impact Review is published by the Immersive Experience Alliance (IXA), a collective of educators and creative leaders advancing immersive media production, research, and education. Founded in 2024, IXA fosters cross-institutional collaboration in XR, uniting creative practice and applied research to address real-world challenges.

 

Founding members include:
The Johnny Carson Center for Emerging Media Arts (University of Nebraska–Lincoln), Walking Cinema, the College of Media, Communication and Information (CU Boulder), the Texas Immersive Institute (UT Austin), Arizona State University’s Herberger Institute for Design and the Arts / MIX Center, the Creative Media Industries Institute (Georgia State University), and the Immersive Media Design Program (University of Maryland).

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