From Degas to Danger Mouse, what’s your place in the debate of content creation and curation? Both companies’ and consumers’ expectations of user experience have matured, helping content strategy come to the forefront in driving good user experiences. Content strategists shape communication goals, hierarchy, and taxonomy. Are these innocent choices? Or politics, discrimination, and the dark side of design? We’ll discuss this through the lens of content correlation and “merchandising” on news sites, editing and mashing up to “create” anew, and curating in traditional settings like museums. From seemingly benign audits and style guidelines through published content packages, do curators create meaning? If so, how should you confront similar choices? It’s been a breakout year for content strategy. Come hear why now we need to confront its ethical relevance – and learn about the missteps of teams that don’t – through the lens of case studies, Sarbanes-Oxley, user-generated content, and the perspective of the new publishing landscape. Presented at Web 2.0, #W2E and #CSethics, October 11, 2011.

1. Creation, curation, and
the ethics of content strategy
Margot Bloomstein
Web 2.0 Expo 101111
@mbloomstein
#CSethics / #W2E

2. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein2

3. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein3
AMASSING IS NOT CURATING.

4. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein4

5. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein5
HOARDING IS NOT CURATING.

6. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein6

7. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein7
AGGREGATING IS NOT CURATING.

8. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein8
Curation filters the flood of
content for the specific
purpose, place, time, and
audience

9. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein9

10. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein10

11. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein11
Curation filters the flood of
content so that the audience
can take meaning from it

12. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein12
Curation filters the flood of
content so that the audience
can take meaning from it
How can I use this information?
What’s most important about this topic?
How is this relevant to me or me today?

13. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein13
Curation filters the flood of
content so that the audience
can take meaning from it
What five things should I buy first?
What can get me up to speed on the news?
How can I best interact with you?

14. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein14
But what if it doesn’t create new
meaning?

15. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein15
But what if it doesn’t create new
meaning?
If we’re not doing that, what is the
value in what we are doing?
Without new meaning, can content
be valuable?

16. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein16
Creation
Curation
Ethics

17. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein17
Creation

18. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein18

19. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein19

20. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein20

21. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein21
But addition isn’t creation.

22. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein22
But addition isn’t creation.
Danger Mouse selected parts,
remixed existing music, and
designed new elements to integrate.

23. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein23

24. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein24

25. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein25

26. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein26
Tough choices:
Selection
Creation
Emphasis

27. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein27
“The street is a theater, though with free admission.”
Henri Cartier-Bresson

28. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein28
exploration
engagement+
creation?

29. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein29
exploration
engagement+
creation?
selection
exclusion
editing
preservation
arrangement
emphasis
archiving
expiration

30. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein30
Creation is the act of making
new meaning from the world,
and often, sharing it with others.

31. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein31
Creation is the act of making
new meaning from the world,
and often, sharing it with others.
Interface
Action and actor
Synthesis
Engagement, publishing, dissemination

32. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein32
But is that enough?

33. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein33
Do we also require
the artist or content creator
to offer a point of view?

34. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein34
Do we also require
the author or website or newspaper
to offer a point of view?

35. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein35
If so, what do we call that?

36. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein36
Creation
Curation

37. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein37
“All history is provisional, and any
retrospective worth looking at
expresses a point of view.”
Peter Galassi, Chief Curator,
MOMA Department of Photography

38. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein38
“All history is provisional, and any
retrospective worth looking at
expresses a point of view.”
Peter Galassi, Chief Curator,
MOMA Department of Photography
Reliable narrator?

39. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein39
“All history is provisional, and any
retrospective worth looking at
expresses a point of view.”
Peter Galassi, Chief Curator,
MOMA Department of Photography
Storyteller?

40. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein40
“All history is provisional, and any
retrospective worth looking at
expresses a point of view.”
Peter Galassi, Chief Curator,
MOMA Department of Photography
Trustworthy arbiter of reality?

42. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein42

43. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein43
What does curation entail?

44. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein44
“First we conceive the subject
that will bring new insight to both
the general public and experts.”
George Shackelford,
Museum of Fine Arts Boston
Chair, Art of Europe and Solomon Curator
of Modern Art

45. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein45
Scope and perspective

47. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein47
Scope and perspective
Cultivation, aggregation, editing

48. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein48
“Then we figure out the works
that should be in the show and
use contacts in the field.
Some are held in reserve, some
we may not get, and some we
have no way of tracking down.”

49. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein49
Human Automation
Aggregation
CultivationFiltering
Hunting
Prioritization

50. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein50
Scope and perspective
Cultivation, aggregation, editing
Building the story for the target
audience

51. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein51
“Next we put together the catalog,
a book of the exhibition—not an
entry for each piece.
A narrative allows us to tell the
story better and more concisely
than if we had to comment on
each object.”

52. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein52
Scope and perspective
Cultivation, aggregation, editing
Building the story for the target
audience
Organization, juxtaposition,
hierarchy, and emphasis

53. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein53
“I control where things go on the
wall and in what sequence.
I shape the visitor’s experience:
I pair things, create groups, and
consider scale.”

54. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein54
chihuahuas vs. great danes?

56. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein56
“There’s creativity in the
intervention I make in what I
choose for you to see—
an exercise that has an effect on
how you understand a subject.”

57. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein57
Organization

58. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein58
Scale & hierarchy

59. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein59
Juxtaposition

60. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein60
Emphasis

61. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein61
Scope and perspective
Cultivation, aggregation, editing
Building the story for the target
audience
Organization, juxtaposition,
hierarchy, emphasis
Bias

62. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein62
Curating requires a curator.

63. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein63
“The public ought to recognize
there’s a person behind what
they’re seeing.
But the art, not the organization,
is the purpose—that’s why we’re a
museum, not a publishing house.”

64. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein64
Digital curators at Realtor.org
follow these same steps to curate
Field Guides:
Specific to a topic
Mined from customer service calls
Updated on a set editorial calendar
Curating resources, examples, and data

66. NAR’s
perspective
+
Original
content
+
Curated
content

67. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein67
Curation is an act of creating new
meaning by combining existing
content with new perspective.

68. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein68
Curation is an act of creating new
meaning by combining existing
content with new perspective.
Perspective is the unique purview of
humans.

69. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein69
Curation is an act of creating new
meaning by combining existing
content with new perspective.
Perspective is the unique purview of
humans.
Without that, it’s just aggregation.

70. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein70
Accidents vs. intentions—
and where do algorithms fit in
anyhow?

71. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein71
This is selecting, not curating.

72. This is a faulty algorithm, not human.

73. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein73
Content strategy demands
human oversight.

74. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein74
Curating calls for emphasis in
organization—and visual sense.

75. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein75
Creation
Curation
Ethics

76. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein76
How can you tell the story and
maintain the integrity of the
content you curate in new
contexts?

77. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein77
“Deleting the Petri dish so that
people see the yeast colony is a
more responsible representation.”
Felice Frankel, photographer and scientist

78. © Felice Frankel

79. © Felice Frankel

80. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein80
Up for debate?

81. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein81

82. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein82
“Every punch has to be worked out.
Not four cameras and then you
cut it together in the editing room.
That’s selecting, not directing.”
Martin Scorsese on Raging Bull

83. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein83
How can we hold ourselves
responsible if we don’t have
communication goals to which
we’re accountable?

84. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein84
What are we trying to do, anyway?

85. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein85
What are we trying to do, anyway?
Persuade?

86. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein86
What are we trying to do, anyway?
Inform?

87. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein87
What are we trying to do, anyway?
Sell?

88. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein88
Ethical content strategy and
curation demand a concrete
perspective.

89. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein89
Ethical content strategy and
curation demand a concrete
perspective.
What is most important?

90. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein90
Ethical content strategy and
curation demand a concrete
perspective.
What’s the message you’re trying to
send?

91. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein91
Ethical content strategy and
curation demand a concrete
perspective.
Can you sustain it cohesively and
consistently through the experience?

92. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein92
“Sustainable content is content
you can create—and maintain—
without going broke,
without lowering quality in ways
that make the content suck, and
without working employees into
nervous breakdowns.”
Erin Kissane, The Elements of Content Strategy

93. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein93
What are we trying to do, anyway?
• Create by engaging and sharing

94. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein94
What are we trying to do, anyway?
• Create by engaging and sharing
• Curate with human oversight &
perspective

95. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein95
What are we trying to do, anyway?
• Create by engaging and sharing
• Curate with human oversight &
perspective
• Commit to a transparent, intentional,
sustainable strategy

96. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein96
Thank you!
Rick Allen, Felice Frankel, Erin Kissane, Mike Lohmiller,
Hilary Marsh, Tamsen McMahon, Mary Martinez-Garcia,
George Shackelford, Boston Museum of Fine Arts,
Content Strategy New England, and the Content
Strategy Google Group.
Cartier-Bresson works © Henri Cartier-Bresson / Magnum Photos.
Books www.flickr.com/photos/tansengming/2728694064.
Hoarding © AETV. Niagara Falls CC www.flickr.com/photos/zaniac.
Water CC www.flickr.com/photos/mariela/72464475.

97. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein97
But wait! There’s MORE!
• Content Strategy Google Group
• Meetup.com/  your local
content strategy chapter
• Twitter: follow #contentstrategy
• Content Strategy at Work,
coming this spring!

98. © 2011
#CSethics / #W2E | @mbloomstein98
Thank you!
Margot Bloomstein
@mbloomstein
margot@appropriateinc.com
slideshare.net/mbloomstein
#CSethics /#W2E