News Quiz

Gamifying global headlines through voice

Overview

The TRT World News Quiz was a weekly, voice-first trivia game built for Google Assistant and Amazon Alexa. Designed to test users' knowledge of global current events, the quiz made news consumption interactive and accessible through emerging voice platforms.

Launched as part of TRT World’s innovation strategy, the quiz helped position the network as an early mover in the voice ecosystem—providing a light, engaging entry point to global journalism.

The Challenge

How do you make news content discoverable, engaging, and habit-forming on devices not built for traditional browsing? Our challenge was to turn serious world news into a playful, voice-native format—delivered weekly, across platforms, with editorial integrity and technical polish.

What We Built

• Voice App for Google Assistant & Alexa
  Users could launch the quiz with commands like “Ok Google, start TRT World Quiz” or “Alexa, open TRT World Quiz,” then answer three multiple-choice questions by speaking the number of their choice.

• Omnichannel Distribution
  In addition to smart speakers, the quiz content was repurposed across TRT World’s website (QZZR), Instagram carousel posts, social GIFs, and email newsletters.

• Editorial Workflow

  • Quiz questions were derived from that week's top global stories—avoiding pop culture and keeping a balanced geopolitical lens.

  • A rotating editorial team handled question writing, voice narration, post-production editing, and platform uploads on a strict Monday–Friday schedule.

• Smart Display Enhancements (2019 Update)

  • Added visual cards and tappable answer chips for Android phones, TVs, and smart displays.

  • Improved voice interaction (VUI) with better error handling and re-engagement prompts.

  • User scores were stored (with permissions), unlocking future gamification potential.

User Experience

• Play Length: ~2–3 minutes

• Interaction: Natural voice responses, answer confirmation, and scoring

• Feedback: Positive reinforcement after each response; weekly engagement hooks

Outcomes

• Global Reach: Quiz content localized for an international audience, avoiding overemphasis on any one country’s news.

• Reinforced Brand Engagement: Weekly usage built a recurring habit with news-curious users, many of whom discovered TRT World through voice assistants.

• Platform Recognition: The News Quiz, along with TRT’s other voice apps, earned multiple honors, including Actions on Google Developer Challenge wins.

• Repurposable Content: Questions powered not only the voice apps but also social media quizzes, Instagram carousels, and daily email campaigns.

What Made It Work

• Consistency: A rock-solid weekly production pipeline with backups, failsafes, and Slack-based coordination.

• Voice-Native Thinking: The quiz wasn’t adapted from a TV show—it was built from scratch with natural language and brief interactions in mind.

• Cross-Platform Flexibility: One content stream. Many surfaces. Maximum ROI.

Learnings

In voice, less is more. By limiting the quiz to just three questions and optimizing for natural interaction, we saw better engagement than more complex news formats. Building editorial and technical agility into the workflow was key to maintaining momentum over time.