Discussion 2:

Reflect on the definitions of “metadata” in Lesson 1 and the Karen Coyle chapter from Week
One. For this week’s discussion post, read this week’s required readings (Macpherson and Cole)
and answer the following questions: What is the “data” in each article? What is “metadata”?
According to these articles, how can the addition or exclusion of metadata impact our lives
and/or preserve memory? What are the ethical implications of this addition or exclusion? Please
reference the required readings in your post and don’t forget to respond to a classmate’s post as
well.

In lesson 1 we are introduced to a simplified definition of metadata “data about data.”

However, there are some standards that we can follow to provide a more structured framework
for metadata, one of these structure standards is Dublin Core. Although Dublin Core was initially
created to help describe electronic documents making them easier to access on web. The 15
elements of Dublin Core act as the structured framework. By adding elements such as the
creator, relation, subjects, among others, we are extending the use of the data and enabling the
resource to reach a broader audience. This is crucial in the digital era that we are facing.
Nowadays, people rely more on the web to get their everyday data. The amount of content we
can access on the web will continue to grow and in order to not become oversaturated with a
large amount of data that is hard to access, schemes such as Dublin Core will continue to play a
key role.

By making resources accessible on the web, they can reach a wider range of audiences.
This is a big advantage because it can provide more opportunities for a larger community. For
example, my brother is taking an IT program online. The program's creators are originally
overseas, but because they offer access to their presentations and notes online, my brother can
participate in this 6-month program without even having to leave the house. If the examples that
his instructor provided are not clear enough for him, he can easily do an engine search using key
words that will result in more examples that he can use. Metadata can help widen the number of
tools accessible to any student. Because of it, we now have a larger set of resources. In John
Macpherson’s article, he describes how through the help of a quick google search, he was able to
find out the details of lynching in Samoa. Metadata can help us get a better understanding of an
event in history without having had to experience it ourselves. It can help preserve history by
letting us access news reports from the period, providing us with more accounts of that event.

In Teju Cole’s article, he talks about Zun Lee’s collection of polaroid pictures of African
American from the 1970-2000s, which he called the “Fade Resistance.” Lee uploaded some of
the pictures to Facebook, and one of the men in the pictures asked him to take the images down.
Metadata can help preserve memories, that doesn’t always mean the owners of those memories
want them to be remembered. Although metadata can be a useful tool in helping preserve
resources and memories, it can also be a little daunting. Especially now with the rise of social
media. When we upload something to the web, we have little to no control over who will see it.
We can attempt to set restrictions to our posts, but with things like screenshots and screen
recordings, we don’t know where they could end up, like with the man in Lee’s photographs.

Cole, T. (2016, April 26). The digital aftermath of lost family photos. New York Times
Magazine. Retrieved from http://nyti.ms/1NOTWB2.

Macpherson, J. (2014, June 5). Metadata, time and the story of our pasts. Retrieved
from http://www.duckrabbit.info/2014/06/metadata-time-and-the-story-of-our-pasts/.