Final Paper

Mary Corcoran
Spring 2013
LIS 510

Special Collections 2.0:
Upgrading Social Media and Building an Institutional Presence Online

Abstract
The relatively recent proliferation of Web 2.0 technologies among libraries, archives, and museums has dramatically altered the landscape in which institutions’ holdings—digital and otherwise—are accessed and handled by researchers. For any cultural institution, specifically a special collection, to thrive in the digital era, it is necessary to embrace Web 2.0 technologies as a means of expanding access to resources, facilitating relationships among patrons and staff, encouraging informed dialogues and opportunities for self-discovery, and in doing so, cultivating a robust and respected online institutional presence. Websites are increasingly becoming institutions’ most visible, public faces, and thus deserve investment, particularly in the area of interactive technologies, such as blogs.

Introduction
The term “blog” is a shortening of the expression “web log,” which was first used in the late 1990s by Internet pioneers to describe their own independently engineered websites. The term predates the technology, however, and the accepted use of the word “blog” was not established until the mid-2000s; (the number of blogs in existence worldwide was estimated at 19.6 million in 2005). Blogs may be understood as alterative content management systems, whose easy navigability and ability to reach broad audiences is simply waiting to be met by web-savvy librarians.

As of 2013, it is standard for the majority of cultural institutions to maintain some sort of online presence, be it an official website, a blog, or both. It is important to note that the term “website” may not be used interchangeably with the term “blog,” the latter of which generally denotes a structure that encourages discourse as opposed to “one-way communication.” Still gaining in popularity are Web 2.0 technologies, such blogs and alternative social media, like Twitter, as means of developing an online presence geared toward interaction and collaboration with the virtual patron base.

The expression “Web 2.0” was first used in 2004 by publisher and technocrat Tim O’Reilly to describe the “next envisioned iteration of the internet,” in which “democracy and user-driven content” encourage persistent emergence of new social media technologies. Similarly, scholar Jessica Dye in her article, “Collaboration: Make the Web Your Workspace,” draws on the Wikipedia definition of “Web 2.0” to define the category as containing programs or applications that allow for collaboration, sharing, and interactivity among users. Included under the ever-expanding Web 2.0 umbrella are podcasts, wikis, programs such as Twitter and Instagram, and blog platform providers including Tumblr, Wordpress, and Blogger.

An even more sophisticated manifestation of the trend toward user-driven content and technology is the development of APIs, or Application Programming Interfaces. The full scope of APIs’ ability to manipulate data is truly beyond definition, but for the purpose of this paper, APIs should be understood as a means by which developers may either request alterations to software, or alter software themselves (through open-source and creative commons agreements), in order to better suit specific computation, arrangement, or display needs for any data an institution may host. The wealth of freely available Web 2.0 technologies—fully customizable, exploitable platforms—is perhaps the most obvious reason that any non-profit cultural institution, specifically special collections with historically meager budgets, should establish and cultivate its own institutional online presence.

Some of the advantages of introducing Web 2.0 technologies include: (1) providing a forum for developing an online patron base; (2) encouraging interaction and collaboration among library staff and patrons; (3) showcasing (un)conventional collections via digital exhibits; (4) allowing librarians and archivists the opportunity to express their own identities and research interests; and (5) offering free publicity, be it for recent acquisitions or upcoming events at the institution.

The disadvantages of introducing Web 2.0 technologies are limited, and are generally characteristic of the liabilities associated with any sort of institutional output designed for public consumption. Depending on the special collection, developing and instituting Web 2.0 technologies will require the cooperation and agreement of many parties, including, but not limited to, upper administration; the legal department (which may provide advice on how to structure affiliation between the institution and blog or twitter feeds so as to limit liability); the information and technology (IT) department (which may provide web development recommendations and/or guidelines); and, the public relations department (which will likely be concerned with how any institutional branding is implemented, as well as any views associated with the brand). Individual special collections’ size and organization will dictate the method by which aforementioned responsibilities are delegated throughout the staff. In addition to the threat of bad press, introducing Web 2.0 technologies at understaffed institutions is sometimes perceived as a low priority, or an effort that only further taxes already thin resources.

Research Question
What purpose, if any, might blogs serve in libraries and special collections?

Literature Review
Kate Theimer’s article, “Using Social Media to Create the Foundation for Effective Advocacy,” establishes a great foundation from which to expand one’s understanding of how Web 2.0 technologies may enhance an institution’s “reach.” In terms of providing outreach and advocacy, Theimer identifies four clearly achievable goals—explaining what we do, building communities, expanding audiences, and “demonstrating facility with technology and openness to new ideas”—for building a blog. These goals, with their emphasis on simultaneously providing entertainment and educational content, as well as space for interaction through discussion and reflection, are critical to informing the purposes of this research paper.

Theimer’s article provides a comprehensive overview of the steps an archivist or librarian in a special library or collection should take in order to establish an online institutional presence using web 2.0 tools, specifically blogs. She discusses the definitions of web 1.0 (one direction of information movement) and web 2.0 (allows for interactivity, or pushing and pulling of content), before going on to explain in detail the many uses a blog can provide for a special library or collection.

In Blogging and RSS, M.P. Sauers asserts that blogs’ distinguishing features are their timeliness, accessibility, omnipotence, and their opinionated nature. Each of these characteristics can and should be manipulated by special collections in their implementation of Web 2.0 technologies. According to Theimer, the difficulties posed by adopting social media at an institution are not technological in nature, but rather, are based on the fact that such a multitude of possibilities exist. Theimer writes, “Carefully thinking through your objectives—who do you want to reach, what do you want to share, and what do you want to achieve? —should be your first steps, before considering what website or software to use.” The wealth of options available, though sometimes daunting, is decidedly beneficial.

Martin Kalfatovic, et al, in the report, “Smithsonian Team Flickr: a library, archives, and museums collaboration in web 2.0 space,” explore The Smithsonian’s entrée into the Web 2.0 environment. In January of 2008, one of the key motivators for the Smithsonian partnership with Flickr for a 6-month pilot project was the disjointed reality of the institution’s internal organizational structure. Given that the Smithsonian is “a federated institution comprising fourteen museums, seven research centers, the National Zoo, and various outreach programs – all of which hold photographic collections, digital and non-digital,” the need for streamlining and standardizing access procedures to digital content was paramount. Prior to 2008, little cooperation or collaboration existed among these various units, but since then, The Smithsonian’s participation in the Flickr Commons project has encouraged admirable progress toward providing a central online location for its estimated 13 million images.

A second motivator for The Smithsonian’s partnership with Flickr was the recognition that the Institution needed to make an effort to meet its patrons in the virtual space. The report states:
The decision to join Flickr Commons was driven by the need to have a pan-Institutional pilot to embrace the social networking reality of Web 2.0—choosing to go where visitors are and not requiring them to come to us—and to test the waters on a small but growing desire by some to provide a mechanism for including the voice for our public through folksonomy.

An encouraging underlying trend among library, archive and museum communities, (described in the report as LAMs, but otherwise discussed in this paper as cultural institutions), has been to migrate content-converted data, (e.g. any partially digitized collections from across the Institution’s numerous units) from “single access point portals to larger shared spaces.” This is exactly what The Smithsonian endeavored to achieve through its Flickr Commons initiative.

The three formalized goals for the project were to first, “Increase public knowledge of and access to the Smithsonian’s digital collections, programs, expertise, and other resources;” second, develop an active online community; and third, “improve public outreach.” The case study in evidence at The Smithsonian is an excellent example of what other cultural institutions may achieve through successfully harnessing the power of the Internet. Notably, among the key successes of the Library of Congress’s partnership with Flickr was its ability to “[engage] broad audiences not otherwise accessing its collection,” specifically enticing users interested in commenting for public discussion, and, as a result, drawing huge numbers of visitors to parent Library of Congress websites.

Discussion & Conclusion
Introducing Web 2.0 technologies at a special collection can be done at any pace and at any scale. Depending on individual special collections and their levels of funding and staffing, as well as their relationships with parent organizations, implementing a blog or Twitter feed will require a certain amount of support from colleagues and related support departments. Fortunately, the majority of Web 2.0 technologies offer relatively flexible arrangements whereby the institution determines its degree of public affiliation and liability. This is often dictated by the prominence an institution awards its social media subsidiaries, particularly on its official website.

Louisiana State University and its special collections provide an excellent case study. The University’s official special collections’ webpage is thorough and well maintained, and yet, missing from it is any sort of evident link to the special collections’ blog, which is also thorough and well maintained. The blog, powered by WordPress and copyrighted by LSU Libraries, provides a forum for discussing content hosted by the special collection, and it links back to the institution’s official special collections website, but unfortunately, the blog falls short of reciprocity with its parent institution. Whether or not this is the result of the legal department’s advisement, or a poor relationship with the IT department, it is impossible to know. Whatever the situation, the blog’s visibility is lower than ideal, but the flexibility that WordPress offers as a publishing platform, or host, is advantageous for LSU’s special collection.

At the other end of the spectrum is The New York Public Library, which has embraced Web 2.0 technologies, specifically blogs, Twitter feeds, and APIs, opting to adopt two distinct policies in regard to internal and external social media and subsidiary affiliations. NYPL has developed a rich collection of blog entries submitted by librarians, curators, and other staff; the blog entries are organized by subject and are all constrained by www.nypl.org web addresses. On the NYPL’s official website, the blogs purpose is described as follows:

Our aim is to develop the blog into the latest in a long tradition of librarian-generated genres designed to publish staff expertise and help users navigate the library's breathtaking array of collections and services…

Over time, the blog archive will grow into an enduring knowledge base, which we'll use to enhance and enrich the digital experience of the library. You'll find posts not only in Blogs, Videos & Publications (browseable by subject and channel), but peppered throughout the Library's website — supplementing search results and tied to relevant location pages, topics and events. The goal? Having the wisdom and expertise of NYPL librarians at your fingertips as you explore the site.

NYPL has embraced blogging as a way for online patrons to “meet” their librarians by finding out about their personal research or areas of interest within a particular collection. Though not a special collection, NYPL is an innovator in the field of libraries and it warrants careful monitoring for trends such as its adoption of blogs.

The library has also encouraged the development of freely downloadable “tool suites,” or programs, such as The Map Warper, made available through the Map Division. The Map Warper uses content produced and hosted by the Map Division (all of which is property of NYPL), and provides access via two distinct URLs: http://maps.nypl.org/warper/ and http://www.mapwarper.net/, the latter of which is not officially affiliated with NYPL, but whose webpage content states otherwise.

The advantages of introducing Web 2.0 technologies include: (1) providing a forum for developing an online patron base; (2) encouraging interaction and collaboration among library staff and patrons; (3) showcasing (un)conventional collections via digital exhibits; (4) allowing librarians and archivists the opportunity to express their own identities and research interests; and (5) offering free publicity, be it for recent acquisitions or upcoming events at the institution. Given the wealth of free user-friendly blog platforms available on the Internet, building a blog is a simple and “low-tech” way to meet library patrons halfway.

Arguing against the implementation of Web 2.0 technologies in 2013 is effectively the equivalent of dismissing the Internet as a means of public outreach. Special collections need only look at their parent institutions, or the business-arm of their organizations, to recognize that harnessing the power of blogs and Twitter feeds is an endeavor for now. In a time of forever shrinking library budgets and reduced attention spans, special collections should act to establish an online patron base with whom interactions are mutually rewarding.


Works Cited
Blog Channel. (2013, February 15). Retrieved from New York Public Library: http://www.nypl.org/voices/blogs/blogs-channels

Dye, J. (2007, January 26). Collaboration: Make the Web your Workspace. EContent
Magazine , 32-36.

Fitzpatrick, J. (2010, June 20). Best Five Blogging Platforms. Retrieved February 15, 2013, from Life Hacker: http://lifehacker.com/5568092/five-best-blogging-platforms

Guza, T. (2011, March). Washington Libraries Reveal Social Media Secrets. ALKI , 19-21.

Kalfatovic, M. R., Kapsalis, E., Spiess, K. P., Camp, A., & Edson, M. (2009). Smithsonian Team Flickr: a library, archives, and museums collaboration in web 2.0 space. Smithsonian Institute. US Goverment.

Sauers, M. P. (2006). Blogging and RSS: A Librarian's Guide. Medford, NJ: Information Today, Inc.

Theimer, K. (2011). Building a Community of Supporters: The Role of New Technologies in Advocacy. In L. J. Hackman, Many Happy Returns: Advocacy and the Development of Archives (pp. 337-354). United States: Society of American Archivists.

Transforming Research Libraries: The Unique Role of Special Collections. (2012, Aug. 7). Retrieved Mar. 16, 2013, from Association of Research Libraries: http://www.arl.org/rtl/speccoll/index.shtml

Trivedi, M. (2010, May). Blogging for Libraries and Librarians. Library Philosophy and Practice.