Internet Librarian October 26, 2015Kenn Bicknell

Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (USA)

bicknellk@metro.net

MAPS, MUSIC & MORE: Crowd-sourcing metadata

for digital assets

--Alec Ross,

Former senior advisor for innovation

for U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton,

2013

“The 21st Century is a terrible time to be a

control freak.”

Crowd-sourcing: Then & Now

“Amateur” vs. “Expert”

Identification projects

Transcription projects

Mapping projects

User-generated content projects

Types of GLAM crowd-sourcing

Identification: Museum of Design in Plastics (U.K.)

Identification: Smithsonian Freedmen’s Bureau Project

Transcription: U.S. National Archives

Identification: Bodleian scores (U.K.)

Transcription: Letters to Einstein

Transcription: Old Weather

Mapping: Year of The Bay

Mapping: New York Public Library MapWarper

Mapping: New York Public Library Space/Time Directory

User-Generated Content: 9/11 Archive

New goals without old limits (time / finances / resources)New virtual communities & user groupsInvolving & engaging communityUtilizing public knowledge, expertise & interestsImproving quality & value of dataData discoverable in different ways for diverse audiencesNew insight on user desires / interestsDemonstrating GLAM value by listening to communityEncouraging a sense of public ownership & responsibility

Benefits & Opportunities

Front-end effort for small or narrow projects with no environmental scan

Competition from digital content providersDistraction of gaming / engagement opportunitiesSocial pressure against crowdsourcing expertisePotential for “disintermediation” of GLAM professionals?

Challenges & Risks

Organizing the Crowd of Crowds

THANK YOU!

Kenn BicknellDigital Resources Librarian

Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (USA)

bicknellk@metro.netMetro.net/library