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Watch President Obama's interview at SXSW Interactive
A US president is about to speak at SXSW Interactive for the first time. President Barack Obama -- who's known to be relatively tech savvy, at least as far as presidents go -- will participate in an interview during a keynote address today at the annual tech fest in Austin, Texas. He'll be discussing civic engagement with Evan Smith, the editor-in-chief of the Texas Tribune, though we're guessing the conversation will cover a whole array of topics (perhaps the current electoral race). If you can't be there in person, you can tune in for our coverage here or just watch the whole thing unfold in the livestream embedded below.
We're live at SXSW Interactive 2016!
Hello Austin! Once again SXSW -- the weird and wonderful show for interactive digital technology -- is upon us, and Engadget's here in full force to bring you the best bits as they happen. Unlike other shows that offer the latest phones, TVs or games, SXSW is all about the big ideas, the slightly crazy ideas, and hottest topics in tech. Expect innovative uses for VR, off-beat music installations, buckets of BBQ, and even a visit from the President. We'll be covering it all (minus, perhaps, the BBQ), and you can follow along right here on Engadget. If you want to make sure you don't miss a thing, then you can closely follow all our coverage here, or get the highlights (and behind the scenes fun) via Instagram, Twitter or Snapchat.
Twitch offers a close look at first-person film 'Hardcore Henry'
Hardcore Henry is basically a mix of Jason Bourne, Captain America and Call of Duty. It's an action epic about a man who wakes from near-death in a futuristic laboratory and with no memory of his past. Minutes after regaining consciousness, he embarks on a dangerous mission to save his kidnapped wife from a warlord who plans to create genetically engineered super soldiers. The entire movie is shot in a first-person perspective, directly from Henry's point of view. This perspective twist certainly sounds interesting -- and you can get a closer look at it on Wednesday, February 10th, live on Twitch.
BuzzFeed returns to SXSW lineup following online harassment fiasco
BuzzFeed said it would only come back to the South by Southwest festival panel roster if organizers put online harassment back on the agenda, and it's making good on its word. The web firm tells Recode that it's returning to SXSW 2016's lineup now that the event has instituted a day-long Online Harassment Summit. The SXSW team has "moved in the right direction," BuzzFeed says. There's no word yet on whether or not fellow abstainer Vox Media is returning, although it won't be surprising if the online publisher follows suit.
Buzzfeed will skip SXSW unless cancelled gaming panels are reinstated
On Monday, the South by Southwest festival announced that it was nixing a pair of gaming-related panel discussions because a bunch of mouth-breathing, neck-bearded man-children threatened "on-site violence" in response. Tuesday, three Buzzfeed executives -- EIC Ben Smith, President of Motion Pictures Ze Frank and Publisher Dao Nguyen penned a strongly worded letter to the festival, effectively demanding organizers put on their Big Boy Pants and not be swayed by unsubstantiated threats. Otherwise, Buzzfeed would pull its entire staff from the event and at least a half dozen other unrelated panels. Good on you, Buzzfeed.
