Museum Social Media Practices: In Need of Repair?

Kist, C. (2021) Museum Social Media Practices: In Need of Repair? In: First International Conference, RISE IMET 2021, Nicosia, Cyprus, 2-4 June 2021, pp. 282-293. ISBN 9783030836467 (doi: 10.1007/978-3-030-83647-4_19)

Abstract

Within the museum sector, research and associated theories on technology can often lead to rhetoric on progression that results in the idealization of the new or the emergent. However, if we approach technologies with a sensitivity towards their fragility, we see it is not always progression that is most interesting, but processes of repair. Social media, it can be argued, is an outdated technology which has lost its excitement and like the larger ideals associated with digital in the cultural heritage sector, is perceived with skepticism. Yet, with the rise of the museum’s social role, museums have an ethical responsibility to understand the factors that shape how social media practices are enacted. In this paper I take on perspective of repair to explore the intersection between social media and organizational structures through an in-depth ethnographic case study of Glasgow Museums Services (Glasgow, UK). The analysis provides essential insights into the (dis)-connections between museum social media practices and museum infrastructure. It suggests that the desire for more participatory social media practices overlooks the underpinning and incompatible elements of the museum institution.

• Item Type: Conference Proceedings
• Status: Published
• Refereed: Yes
• Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID: Kist, Dr Cassandra
• Authors: Kist, C.
• College/School: College of Arts & Humanities > School of Humanities > Information Studies
• ISSN: 1865-0929
• ISBN: 9783030836467
• Published Online: 03 August 2021
• Copyright Holders: Copyright © 2021 Springer Nature Switzerland AG
• First Published: First published in Emerging Technologies and the Digital Transformation of Museums and Heritage Sites: First International Conference, RISE IMET 2021, Nicosia, Cyprus, June 2–4, 2021, Proceedings: 282-293
• Publisher Policy: Reproduced in accordance with the publisher copyright policy

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Project Code	Award No	Project Name	Principal Investigator	Funder's Name	Funder Ref	Lead Dept
302435		POEM	Maria Economou	European Commission (EC)	764859	Arts - Information Studies