Addendum to Crowdsourcing the Future of Museums Pt II: About MyCulture and personalizing the museum experience

This is continues my summary of content generated by attendees at the Museums in Conversation luncheon on March 30th, 2009 in Tarrytown, NY as they played the game “Crowdsourcing the Future.” See Part I to read about how the game works.

One of the most interesting sessions I attended at MIC was about social tagging (encouraging users to collaboratively create and manage tags to annotate and categorize content.) Participants discussed the pros and cons of “folksonomies” (the organizational systems created through social tagging) versus traditional academic taxonomies, and the challenges of “vetting” content contribute by users.

This session segued nicely into the exploration I led at lunch about the “MyCulture” trend described in CFM report Museums & Society 2034:Trends and Potential Futures. Reading over the game content, it is clear that my crowdsourcers were ambivalent, to say the least, about opening up museum’s choices (collections, interpretation, cataloging) to user-input.

Some comments from the pessimist’s camp:

“If 70% of tags are generated by the public this 70% will be a self-selected group like other wiki authors who are a non-scholarly group of hermits. Very bad for museums...” [Though another writer points out that in the good tagging systems already in use, “many of these taggers are well informed—smart amateurs or professionals on their time off. I am optimistic if these taggers are the same sorts of folks as our “expert” volunteers. But bad will drive out good—the museum professionals have to be prepared to edit ruthlessly.”]

“History and the meaning of artworks, etc., will be revised by hackers and various other nefarious sorts whose only interest in museums is wreaking havoc and professional staff will be unable to clarify/provide “better” or more complete understanding of objects/art to the general public.”

“This will create and extend shared ignorance....”

“Will guests really take time and an interest to add information? Do they really know accurate information to offer?” Challenges a responder “Yes! Guests are dying for involvement. Any they will be much more engaged and tell all their friends to come and add information.”

And from the optimists:

“In 2034, museums will make collections available for visitors to “curate” their own shows on their own web pages, which are hosted by the museum. Some of these could become actual shows too. Local artists, museums, craftsmakers, etc will use the museum and/or museum homepage to host their work. Local community members will translate museum content into foreign languages. All these trends increase the relevancy of the museum within the lives of its constituent public.”

“The role of the “all-knowing” curator will be abandoned. Visitors will be instructed how to appropriately interact with objects (i.e., white gloves) but will be able to “self-curate” shows virtually or by lottery on a rotating basis at museums. Visitors will become conservators/stewards. This is so exciting!” Chimes in another commentator “I agree! The value of collections will speak for themselves when visitors can have meaningful interactions.”

“I see interactive labels and information about objects on view and collections. Example: open display [of] a Shaker chair or old print that your curator knows nothing or little about. You provide the meanings for visitors to add information and expertise as they go through the show, or they can put it online. By the end of the show, you have gathered information and learned what the chair (pr print) is. Two or three real experts provide most of the information but 67 others added some peripheral information. (The curator vets it.)” Building on this, another crowdsourcer says “This will be an on-going process and curators may actually behave like editors of the content provided.” AAnd (the big question) “Who will be the final authority when there is a question?”

“Call the interactive model the “Wikipedia Model” and invite the input! Checks and balances and fact checking tools will be necessary, but what a great way to promote dialogue and become relevant!”

Mike Flinton, CGP. One person points out that the new “citizen cataloging system” will favor larger institutions with the staff size to manage the vast increase in data—possibly with assistance from AI technology”

“Data activist groups who take over organizing the data on their own”

One crowdsourcer envisioned museums maintaining “empty spaces” in which visitors and communities can create exhibits, with curators providing feedback—the curators are the audience. (Erin Chrissmann, The Farmer’s Museum, Cooperstown, NY.)

Regarding a suggestion that the public could help museums decide what to collect, one crowdsourcer commented “yes, it could be confusing, but also exciting to say the least!”

“By 2034 users will be so involved in generating content at that they will start taking the role that some museums have now—all putting out content, no more listening and dialogue.”

“Museums that survive will be all about dialogue—that is why they will survive”

See the CFM blog for a discussion of this debate, and where it may lead museums in the future…