Curating the Content Deluge

With many media tools available at accessibly low costs of entry and with the internet facilitating effortless sharing of the content that arises, Michael Bhaskar's curation talk looks at the importance of deciding what spectators end up seeing. There's far too much media for anyone to see everything that gets released in even the smallest subgenre or niche, let alone an entire field, which means that curation today has more of an impact on our cultural lives —and indeed our lives as a whole — than its ever has before. Bhaskar's talk dives into the skill of curation and what it means for society as a whole.

Initially, curation was essentially relegated to the world of high art. Before the days of the internet, the only relevant aspect of curation was in museum curators who had the power to control what was considered good art. The internet changed that, allowing everyone to curate anything on their own websites. And as economies have grown, so too is curation necessary for retail, finance, and even government policy.

The key factor to consider, ultimately, is the ethics of curation. Curating for consumers means that consumers don't get to see all that's available. Rather, they only see from a reduced number as decided by a third party. Bhaskar estimates that, from an economic perspective at least, such reduced choice is actually beneficial.