Washington, D.C.'s Newseum a technophile's dream

Interested in taking a peek at a few Christie DLP projectors, Stewart screens, Tannoy speakers and Bag End subs? What if a few HD flat-panels and a "4D" theater are throw in? Astoundingly enough, all of the aforesaid equipment and much, much more has been installed at the soon-to-open Newseum in Washington, D.C. Put simply, the venue "traces the history of news reporting from the 16th century to the present," and needless to say, it does so in impressive fashion. There's no telling exactly how many Benjamins Electrosonic burned through installing the plethora of high-end gear, but with 250,000 square feet of technology-laced area, we're thinking a trip (for "education," of course) may be in order.

[Via AboutProjectors]

[(Unverified) Posted Apr 11th 2008 12:05PM]

Mebbe they'll enshrine Dan Rather's "fake but accurate" T.A.N.G. memos from 2004, I mean 1972. . .

[(Unverified) Posted Apr 11th 2008 12:40PM]

Did it finally re-open at the new location?! The Newseum was one of the best attractions in town, but they closed the Arlington spot a few years ago while they were working on this one.

[(Unverified) Posted Apr 11th 2008 2:45PM]

Opened April 11. There was an article in the Post about it a few weeks ago saying that the building is really ugly.

[(Unverified) Posted Apr 11th 2008 4:11PM]

Just got back from it, opening day. The Washington Post did not say that the building is "really ugly." It's stunning to see and it goes well with its environment, next to the Canadian Embassy which has always been for many if not most Washingtonians the favorite piece of architecture in the greater Washington area.

There is definitely a LOT of technology on hand, mostly for "interactive" silliness like being a reporter, blah blah blah.

George Stephanopoulos (sp?) will be broadcasting every Sunday evening from a studio that faces Pennsylvania Avenue with a prime view of the Capitol. Yes, there will be a glass wall that tourists in T-shirts and tube socks can wave through.

The 4D theater has its grand opening tomorrow, April 12. The preview audiences have said it's kind of silly, and if you want to avoid getting wet, sit towards the sides.

There is an incredibly wide projection screen on the 5th Floor that has an impressive multimedia round-up of major news stories over the past couple decades, and that was for me the highlight. Another enjoyable thing was to browse through drawers on that same level of original front pages of newspapers dating back over a century. Finally, blogging gets its proper recognition, including Matt Drudge ("The Drudge Report") and Anne Marie Cox ("Wonkette"). There's even a special section dedicated to citizen journalism such as cell phone video footage shot by a student during the Virginia Tech massacre.

Unfortunately, all this comes at an insanely prohibitive cost. It is the most expensive museum ever, mostly for its real estate, and the admission price will be $20. Across the street is the National Gallery of Art, containing one of the world's greatest general collections and just about every important traveling exhibition. $0. Then, a couple blocks away, the Natural History and American History museums. $0. And across the Mall, numerous other museums -- $0.

One easily gets the impression that this incredible new space was not primarily created for its museum patrons. They will be repaying the extraordinary costs of construction by hosting after-hours Washington galas and fundraisers, and by taping television programs in any of its several live studios.

Just today, it was widely advertised that the official opening ceremony would be at 2:00 p.m. I asked about it at 1:30 p.m., and was told, "It's by invitation only, but it will be shown on the big screen monitor in the atrium."

That about sums it up.