Current Obsession: Telling Stories in a Planetary Context

That is, embedding video in Google Maps and Earth.  It’s possible to create a clickable tour of a neighborhood in Google Maps and strategically use information bubbles at each location to showcase a video profile of a person, an organization or issue of common concern in that community.  In other words, film and edit a story; link it into a map of the particular region you are working in, and then embed the entire module on a web site.  For an example I’ve made, look here: http://tinyurl.com/mdvygw.

In Google Earth, take that same map module and turn it into a fly-through tour, complete with voice-over and stops across the country –or across the planet that will assist in telling your story, giving a true picture of your community.  This fly-through tour can be featured on your web side as an interactive, clickable tour, or as a narrated video.  Here’s a great example, although with pics, not video, Robert Redford’s voiceover harration just can’t be beat:  http://www.goldmanprize.org/tour

What’s your favorite example of using maps and earth to connect up a community — and broadcast their message?