While I don\u2019t think we suffer from\u00a0information overload, I actually think we suffer from a more sinister problem. Curator overload.<\/p>\n
Not good curators like\u00a0Robert Scoble\u00a0or\u00a0Jason Kottke. Those guys are worth their weight in gold, in fact we need more curators like them: they uncover unique, useful and obscure things before everyone else. And if they do repost they always add something.<\/p>\n
I\u2019m talking about curator overload in the form of people taking popular content (usually images, but not exclusively) surfaced on sites like Google+, Reddit, or Stumble and reposting again (as if \u00a0it is new and \/ or they originally discovered it) on a different network or blog,\u00a0without\u00a0<\/em>bothering to credit the original sharer.<\/p>\n I understand that sometimes it is difficult to credit, especially when digging for content on your own. But it is painfully obvious when you belong to multiple networks and see someone basically copy-pasting content someone else has surfaced recently. In essence, it\u2019s different when you\u2019re sharing something\u00a0you<\/em>\u00a0searched for \/ found, vs. something you\u2019re specifically taking from another.<\/p>\n The alternative repost problem is sharing a piece of content the web already passed around last month or last year (without any new context).<\/p>\n Sure neither of these two cases is always intentional. But I get the sense there are a group of web users who may be new to social sharing and need some ground rules to follow.<\/p>\n For them, following are some thoughts to keep in mind:<\/p>\n 1. If you find something via another site or user, credit them<\/strong><\/p>\n Here\u2019s a quick example. I found an image I thought was clever the other week on Reddit, and decided to\u00a0share it on Google+. But I noted in my G+ thread that hey, I discovered this via Reddit. So now my network in Google+ who\u00a0does<\/em>\u00a0use Reddit clearly sees I\u2019m noting where I discovered the image and that I\u2019m not simply ripping off the Reddit community and portraying myself as the one who discovered the image.<\/p>\n I get the feeling so few credit because they think it makes them appear less original. But if you think this way, you\u2019re wrong. Crediting is a positive and is always respected, your network will appreciate it \u2013 always try to link to \/ share the canonical version.<\/p>\n 2. Don\u2019t just throw images \/ links into a community, get up to speed<\/strong><\/p>\n Good web communities have been together awhile. Potentially years, some more than a decade. Yes, there are naturally going to be\u00a0some<\/em>\u00a0reposts but if you post something\u00a0again<\/em>\u00a0that your community shared last week, you\u2019re not really improving that community. You actually only succeed in losing credibility with them.<\/p>\n 3. Perhaps stop the curation and consider creation?<\/strong><\/p>\n Everyone wants to be a curator these days. Tumblr, Google+, Reddit, Facebook, Twitter and new sites like Pinterest all support this model by design. Yet, the\u00a0reasons you should blog, create original web comics or produce your own video continue to increase. This is because the social web has become to some extent a problem in search of a solution. Even today\u00a0participation inequality\u00a0holds true: few are creating, far more curating and\u00a0way<\/em>\u00a0more\u00a0lurking. Insane value in being the one who creates (the solution) for the rest of the web to point at.<\/p>\n 4. Media: equally guilty of reposts\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n Don\u2019t think this issue is isolated to those curating viral content like images. Media are equally guilty of reposting news that\u2019s already out there. I understand why this is the case, it\u2019s easy to do for pageviews (and sometimes glaring if a media outlet doesn\u2019t cover an issue). Do run the news, but\u00a0add context and additional insight\u00a0instead of reposting in a way that\u2019s just differently worded.<\/p>\n 5. Repurpose, recycle, remix, aggregate \u2013 but don\u2019t repost<\/strong><\/p>\n You can get creative with old content to make it new again. This is a lot of fun and what the social web is all about.\u00a0 You don\u2019t always need to be inventing, breathe life into old content creatively.<\/p>\n Why follow these at all? If you\u2019re a perpetual reposter, it becomes apparent very quickly and you\u2019re going to hurt your\u00a0digital reputation. And that\u2019s worth far more than a few extra likes, +1\u2019s and ReTweets: reputation is difficult to build, easy to destroy.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" While I don\u2019t think we suffer from\u00a0information overload, I actually think we suffer from a more sinister problem. Curator overload. … <\/p>\n