Content needs context
Jinfo Blog

By Joanna Ptolomey

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I am having an information crisis this week – I know it is only Tuesday – but it makes me wonder if we are losing the basics about information and what makes it so valuable.  My main gripe is around the lack of context especially in the use of social media – lack of context causes information to float in a vacuum and as such is almost meaningless.

Let me start with social media platforms.  If you have read any of my posts in this last year then you will know that I like conversations that go somewhere, are truly engaged and create return on your connections,  and especially don’t have ghost towns of content.  I am also not particularly impressed by tools per se – at a recent health care social media Canada tweetup (#hcsmca) Ed Bennett wrapped up a panel discussion by saying that in five years time it will be strange that we ever had social media discussion groups at all – it will be like talking about how great a fax machine is.

Don’t be impressed by the machine (tools) – be impressed with what you can do with the machine.

I completely understand why some people shut themselves off from the social media world – on a daily basis the noise coming from these platforms would appear mainly as gossip.  A case in point yesterday in the UK, with the celebrity world and super-injunctions – in my opinion although it does question the legal loopholes I do not need more celebrity buzz.  It can give the wrong impression of content and it is no wonder that an information professional posted to the FUMSI forum recently about why they see no point in using social media as viable content outlets or feeds.

I replied to his post, not to persuade but to add my point of view.  I wanted to provide some context in my professional use.  I believe without context and purpose of use then yes social media could be a time consuming load of rubbish.  But that is my opinion, and please feel free to post your own.

This week I was working on my June FUMSI contribution from Jennifer Jones –" Archiving social media content/context: more questions than answers!".  Her expertise is in the domain of mega sporting events such as the Olympic games and she explains why capturing context is the key to how valuable or useful  information becomes.  Watch out for Jennifer’s article in a few weeks.   I also see examples from other sectors such as in the pharmaceutical industry where not only is content king but also valuable to many stakeholders including patients.

Finally this morning, as I was deliberating over this post, my eye was caught by another superb example – this time from a doctor in general practice (@amcunningham).   She presents Storify – the story of a single tweet and if you ever needed evidence of the importance of context in decision and information needs and use then you should follow this story.  The story has many players, a central character oblivious to the storm they have set in motion and a happy ending with lessons learned.  I think it is a perfect learning example for us all.

For me information content with no context is wasteful and useless.                                       

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