Data, Digital Futures
Staff Researcher
Digital Colonialism in the Global Sphere

Colonialism has consistently been a force in the global purview, including the technological space. In recent years, the expansion of artificial intelligence has vastly increased corporations’ global influence. As the world’s technologies continue to advance and innovate, individuals must keep a watchful eye on the ways in which digital colonialism might repeat harmful practices from the past.

Digital Colonialism in the Global Sphere
entertainment, Film
Staff Researcher
Part I: Playing the Game: The Convergence of ...

Due to the popularity and booming business of video games, Hollywood studios have capitalized on popular game titles by developing new content based off of their intellectual property (IP). This study sets out to better understand video game IP’s impact on film and television markets and what specific elements might impact an adaptation’s success. 

Part I: Playing the Game: The Convergence of Video
Artificial Intelligence, Conferences, museums
Brett Crawford
Future of Museums Summit 2024 Key Takeaways

Sustainability and AI were at the forefront this year at the American Alliance of Museums (AAM) Future of Museums Summit. What role will museums play in creating climate-friendly communities? And how can AI be used to maximize efficiency, increase accessibility, and deepen engagement? Read key conference takeaways from Xueer Ho and Dr. Brett Ashley Crawford.

Future of Museums Summit 2024 Key Takeaways
Analytics, Data, Management
Ian Hawthorne
Data Cultures Part II: Breaking Free from the ...

An overemphasis on data-driven work within the nonprofit sector has been shown to result in cycles of disempowerment, driven by third-party data demands of funding bodies.. This compounds due to the many market orientations nonprofits need to adopt, particularly prevalent among the arts. A key to navigating these markets and funder requirements lies in identifying a specific data culture best fit for your organization and investing in resources and training in order to achieve that framework sustainably.

Data Cultures Part II: Breaking Free from the Cycle of Disempowerment
Accessibility, Artificial Intelligence, museums
Staff Researcher
Envisioning the Future of Museum Accessibility ...

With AI’s ability to automatically produce content and process complicated datasets with high accuracy, museums worldwide are exploring ways in which this innovative technology can help them better achieve their missions and advance accessibility efforts. Through case studies, learn about three applications of this technology: content digitalization, language accessibility, and visual description.

Envisioning the Future of Museum Accessibility Through Artificial Intelligence

Data

, ,

What Arts Organizations Can Learn From Sports: La Liga

, ,
What Arts Organizations Can Learn From Sports: La Liga

As arts organizations look to provide digital experiences to engage audiences, there are lessons to be learned from sports leagues that have restarted seasons and successfully broadcast them to international audiences amidst the Covid-19 pandemic. One example is La Liga. The Spanish league most commonly known as La Liga is one of Europe’s top five soccer leagues. The 2019-2020 season kicked off on August 16, 2019 and was set to go until May 2020, but as the world—and Spain specifically—saw the rapid growth of Covid-19, the league was temporarily suspended. With the campaign entitled #BackToWin, it was the second major European league to resume, with no fans in the stadium and strict safety guidelines. To make the matches a marketable product from an entertainment standpoint, broadcasters experimented with AR “fans” and artificial crowd noise. A spike in La Liga’s international viewership reflects not only the fans’ desire for the return of live sports, but also the value of the product La Liga and its broadcasters were able to create. As sports—and the arts—look for ways to perform virtually, La Liga offers an example for how to do so successfully.

, ,

What Arts Organizations Can Learn From Sports in the New Normal

, ,
What Arts Organizations Can Learn From Sports in the New Normal

So why sports? Although the general perception of the sports industry focuses on teams and their players, the sports industry encompasses a vast number of stakeholders that affect the state of the industry. The industry is made up of a complex web of live sporting events, food stands, media rights, and brand sponsorships. Most importantly, as with the arts, fans and audiences play a key role when it comes to analyzing the state of the industry. Unlike the situation for arts audiences, the global sports market is growing and expected to continue to grow due to esports, an increase in the number of internet accessible devices and the advent of 5G. What opportunities could this offer arts organizations looking for digital innovations to reach audiences?

,

Planning Our Equitable Digital Future

,
Planning Our Equitable Digital Future

2020 has been and will continue to be notable for all but especially artists and arts institutions. Globally we are facing the uncomfortable realities of a pandemic that has brought the arts industries to their knees, economically, particularly the performing arts. Demands for racial and social justice come with a reckoning for many arts institutions — for their own participation in the industrial model that creates inequity in hiring, programming, training, even foundation giving.

As a researcher, artist, academic and former managing director, I hope that 2020 is a year that will offering us, as an industry, a pause to rethink how to do our artistic work in more equitable, inclusive and relevant ways. To create clarity as we re-think institutional systems , it is important to turn to data about our own institutions as well as our audiences in order to become the relevant and vibrant institutions that all communities deserve. In this short article, I will connect information from the recent national survey by LaPlaca Cohen and Slover Linett, “Culture and Community in a Time of Crisis” and emerging best business practices heralded by McKinsey and Co. and other thought leaders in the business field.

,

Why More Arts Organizations Need Privacy Policies

,
Why More Arts Organizations Need Privacy Policies

As the need for website privacy policies grows, how are arts organizations keeping up? From a sample of 100 nonprofit arts organizations across the United States, this article evaluates how many organizations have accessible privacy policies on their website and why that number should be higher—both to show their dedication to protecting patrons’ personal data privacy and to keep up with changing policy requirements.

,

What Arts Nonprofits Should Know About Data Privacy and Security

,
What Arts Nonprofits Should Know About Data Privacy and Security

In a survey of 467 nonprofit professionals, EveryAction and Nonprofit Hub found that 90% of nonprofits are collecting data, but that 49% of surveyed nonprofit professionals did not know how it was collected. While data clearly plays a large role in nonprofit arts organizations’ operations, few have concrete policies and procedures that guide its collection and use. In the context of changing policies about data privacy and increased risk of cyberattacks, this is a dangerous place for nonprofit arts organizations to be in. This article will summarize considerations in areas pertinent to these organizations.

,

Google Suite’s Top Features for Maximizing Analytics

,
Google Suite’s Top Features for Maximizing Analytics

Google Analytics is an indispensable tool for any business to better serve its customers, achieve business goals, and build successful marketing campaigns. Used by itself, analytics is a powerful tool that can help an organization optimize its website and customer pathways. However, integrating additional tools within the Google Suite of tools offers more nuanced and informative means of maximizing data integration and your understanding of your institution’s website connections and conversion. This research report gives a how to for 7 critical Google Suite tools to maximize Google Analytics impact.

,

Observing Relationships Between Producers and Fandom through Digital Mapping: Part 3

,
Observing Relationships Between Producers and Fandom through Digital Mapping: Part 3

With the emergence of digital fan engagement, fan codes and traits that were once hidden to content makers are now able to be studied on an individual and collective scale through scraping and network mapping. This paper explores how to access information in order to understand fan behavior and the best ways to cultivate fan/producer relationships. While this study focuses on film and television, this information can be used to map digital conversations and communities surrounding all artistic mediums.

,

Mapping Movement: Network Mapping in the Dance Industry: Part 2

,
Mapping Movement: Network Mapping in the Dance Industry: Part 2

How well do you know the history of your industry? Could you list every branch, every individual, that helped to develop your industry into the complex and beautiful thing it is today? If you asked someone who works in the arts to craft such an image or list, they’d probably be able to give you a significant list of names. Yet, the truth is, a single individual’s list can’t provide the entire picture, just their perception of what the tree looks like.

,

Increasing Data Collection Capabilities with Web Scraping and Data Scraping: Part 1

,
Increasing Data Collection Capabilities with Web Scraping and Data Scraping: Part 1

With the digitization of our world, data has proven to be incredibly useful for arts and entertainment organizations in terms of decision-making and strategy formation. However, organizations can often be at a loss with how to collect data, how to format data visually, or how to use the data to achieve their goals. What follows is a discussion/outline of two methods for gathering external data for internal use in arts and entertainment institutions: web scraping and data scraping.

,

Creating Success in the Unscripted Video Industry: Part 2

,
Creating Success in the Unscripted Video Industry: Part 2

The landscape of the unscripted video industry is changing. Part 1 of this series explores four case studies demonstrating the current landscape and what features are most appealing to audiences. In this section, the researchers look to experts in the video industry and fans to explore how the landscape is changing and what content providers should expect. This research is applicable to any content provider of unscripted videos. Furthermore, this research serves as an excellent study for understanding what audiences are seeking from the entertainment industry.