Apple this week introduced several fresh Apple News and News+ features, including audio stories, a daily briefing, and curated local collections, plus more top local and regional outlets in North Carolina and Florida.
US Plus subscribers now have their pick of 20 weekly audio stories—narrated versions of feature reporting and long-form pieces published by the best in the business, including Esquire, Essence, Fast Company, GQ, Los Angeles Times, New York magazine, Sports Illustrated, TIME, Vanity Fair, Vogue, Wall Street Journal, Wired.
Simply choose an article, press play, and catch up on the latest essays from around the country and the world. Tune in for essays on national treasure Billy Porter, actress Reese Witherspoon, musician Alicia Keys, and global travel. Don’t have time for a lengthy listen? Get your daily fix with the Apple News Today audio briefing, hosted by in-house editors Shumita Basu and Duarte Geraldino. The rundown, available every weekday morning via the News app and Apple Podcasts, is free to all listeners in the US.
“Apple News showcases so much great journalism, and we’re excited to help bring it to life in new ways with Apple News+ audio stories and a new daily news show, Apple News Today,” Editor in Chief Lauren Kem said in a statement. “We also greatly value our manu local news partners—our new local news feature highlights their work for readers who live, and are interested, in those communities.”
(Photo: Apple)
Audio stories and Apple News Today are housed in the just-launched Audio tab (at the bottom of the iOS app), where users can manage their queue and get personalized recommendations. Apple also introduced synced support for News in CarPlay, so you can stay informed while driving (and continue listening once at your destination).
It’s important to keep up with global and national reports. But what about everything that’s happening in your own community? Cupertino has launched a new curated local news experience, chock full of content from a “diverse collection” of publishers, including a major newspaper in each city and region. Currently focused on the Bay Area, Houston, Los Angeles, New York, and San Francisco, readers can find coverage of sports, dining, weather, and politics, among other personalized news.
A stripped-down version of Apple News is free to download for iPhone, iPad, or Mac; to tap into additional sources (more than 300 magazines and newspapers), you’ll need to sign up for the subscription-based News+, available for $9.99 a month—now with access to The Charlotte Observer, Idaho Statesman, The Kansas City Star, Miami Herald, The News & Observer, and The State (Columbia, S.C.).
