“If you're a curator in a museum, you're thinking about the thousands or millions of people that are coming through your space, not just your own personal taste. That's [also] important when doing a list. I have things that I love that I drink, but if I'm putting a list together, it's really important to think about all the people that are coming through the door.” — Nadine Brown, Sommelier and Wine WriterThe world of wine can be overwhelming. There is so much choice! Thank goodness for sommeliers, who matchmake our taste buds and meals to the perfect bottle. That pairing of food and wine, when done right, is a kind of alchemy itself. Being a sommelier means delivering the right bottle to the right person at the right time. It requires immense knowledge, a knack for really listening to what people want, and then delivering something that creates an experience that is bigger than the sum of its parts.That’s just some of what can be learned from Nadine Brown, a sommelier and wine writer and judge who was also the wine director for the Charlie Palmer Steak House in Washington, DC, where she managed a 4,000-bottle list and more than a few fancy customers. Nadine says she thrives in the chaos of restaurants and takes great joy in providing top-notch recommendations and hospitality. It was a pleasure uncovering more about the business of curating wine for individuals and as part of an institution. Highlights, inspiration and key learnings:What is unique about curating wineHow to think about creating a wine list from scratchHow to pick the right bottle for the right personHow any of us can improve our wine knowledgeWhat most people don’t understand about winesWhich wine pairs best with tacos👋 Say "hi" to Nadine. 🔎 Browse the companion Storyboard to get the episode, plus Nadine’s own curated picks.➕ This podcast was created by Flipboard, the popular social magazine, where enthusiasts are curating stories they recommend across thousands of interests. Learn more.

“‘Disability aesthetics’ is this term that is really loose but points to where we can find disability as the space that informs an artistic practice. When I say ‘disability arts’ or ‘disabled artistry,’ it’s [referring to] artists who have an experience of disability or illness and use that as a space that is generative and that is not hidden from the practice.” — Ezra Benus, artist, educator, and curator The pandemic helped some people understand what it’s like to fear for one’s health daily. But for people living with a disability or chronic illness, the feeling is nothing new. Just think about the arts. Imagine being physically disabled and going to a crowded art show with nowhere to sit, or trying to create large-scale art when your movement is limited. These are things non-disabled people might take for granted but artist/curator Ezra Benus does not. Ezra is half of Brothers Sick, a sibling collaborative with his brother, Noah, who is also a disabled artist. (They currently have their largest commission for an exhibition, Kingdom of the Ill, at Museion in Bolzano, Italy.) Ezra is also an artist in residence at BRIC and works at United States Artists, where he helped to build and still manages the Disability Futures Fellowship, the first and largest unrestricted award to support disabled creatives in the country. Ezra brings a unique perspective to the podcast as he considers disability and illness as part of a curatorial philosophy and practice. Highlights, inspiration and key learnings:Focusing on disabled art, artists and narrativesThe definition of “disability aesthetics” How the art world could be more accessibleWhat other curators can take away from disabled onesDisabled artists more people should know👋 Say "hi" to Ezra. 🔎 Browse the companion Storyboard to get the episode, plus Ezra’s own curated artist picks.➕ This podcast was created by Flipboard, the popular social magazine, where enthusiasts are curating stories they recommend across thousands of interests. Learn more.

“When you focus on the research, educating, explaining and pulling things together, and then communicating that back in an easy way, this idea of bias often does not come up. I know that sounds counterintuitive. But it’s really about placing focus on how we explain [the news]. We don’t really worry about [what each side says]. We put our focus on contextual framing, trying to be quantitative, and communicating in a useful way.” — Drew Steigerwald, Co-founder 1440 In today’s media landscape, understanding what’s happening in the world is a tricky business. It’s a major understatement that you can’t always trust what you see online. Drew Steigerwald is hyperaware of the hazards that can befall news consumers. He and his co-founder Tim Huelskamp started the 1440 newsletter to provide a straightforward, sober view of the day’s headlines, curated from 100+ sources into a five-minute read. Named for the year the printing press was invented (and because there are 1440 minutes in a day), 1440 takes great pride in its “just the facts” approach. But we all know that this is easier said than done. Drew joins us to unpack what it means to him to stay unbiased in a world full of opinion, hype and misinformation.Highlights, inspiration and key learnings:Producing 1440 from start to finishHow to think about sources and which ones to trustHow to manage an information firehoseIs it really possible to be “unbiased”?Keeping positive in the face of depressing headlines👋 Say "hi" to Drew. 🔎 Browse the companion Storyboard to get the episode, plus Drew’s own favorite newsletters and curated picks.➕ This podcast was created by Flipboard, the popular social magazine, where enthusiasts are curating stories they recommend across thousands of interests. Learn more. 

“A lot of the curation and knowledge management is happening in single-player tools. It'd be a lot more powerful to combine the richness and the utility of all these tools with a more networked discovery and communal approach to building knowledge.” — Sari AzoutWhen we talk about curation, the first question that usually pops to mind is: What is the thing being curated? Could be information, music, art, sneakers, NFTs and on and on.Startupy World founder Sari Azout has another viewpoint. She posits that in conditions of extreme information abundance, like we are experiencing today, what is being curated isn’t as important as how those things are discovered, contextualized and shared. Sari is adamant that we need more choice around how we discover content. She advocates for going beyond the feed with systems that focus on utility over entertainment and could help to surface content that makes our souls sing. (Gems that might be overlooked or not gamed to death.)Highlights, inspiration and key learnings:A “controversial” take on curationPros and cons of democratized tastemakingWhat even is good taste?Who thrives in the curator economy?Curators and monetization👋 Say "hi" to Sari. 🔎 Browse the companion Storyboard to get the episode, plus Sari’s own curated culture picks.➕ This podcast was created by Flipboard, the popular social magazine, where enthusiasts are curating stories they recommend across thousands of interests. Learn more. 

“Unlike the traditional definition of collecting, where you just accumulate, sneaker collecting is to accumulate and wear. The finality of collecting the art is to style it, to make it yours. For me, it's not just about the sneaker. It's about the whole fashion and the whole fit. It's about the whole piece that I'm putting out there while highlighting the shoe.” — Jixie Gonzalez, Curvy Kicks Sneakers. They’re everywhere! But for Jasmine “Jixie” Gonzalez, sneakers are more than just footwear. Not only is she the curator of a 30-year collection of over 1,000 kicks, she also describes sneakers as “medicinal.” As a plus-size woman who felt that “fashion never loved me back,” Jixie says sneakers became a language to exert her voice, express her style, and build an uplifting community of other women who love this kind of shoe. Jixie’s passion for sneakers and their transformative power is infectious. Highlights, inspiration and key learnings: Difference between collecting and curating sneakersFinding and acquiring sneakersHow to style sneakersHow being plus-size influences her as a curatorWomen and sneaker culture Other sneaker collectors to know👋 Say "hi" to Jixie. 🔎 Browse the companion Storyboard to get the episode, plus Jixie’s own curated culture picks.➕ This podcast was created by Flipboard, the popular social magazine, where enthusiasts are curating stories they recommend across thousands of interests. Learn more. 

“There's no such thing as an unbiased algorithm, and some companies have probably admitted that sooner than others. But once you do admit it, the only rational step you can take is to try to learn as much as you can about the ways that algorithms can reflect our biases, both positive and negative, and what we can do to tune them so that they are running in line with the principles and standards that we are agreeing to at the outset.” — David Smydra, TwitterDon’t let the Musk circus detract from the fact that there are good people doing good work at Twitter — people who are behind the scenes trying to build a quality experience and live up to a brand’s promise and values.One of those people is David Smydra, the Head of Human in the Loop (HITL) Curation at the social network. If you’re not familiar with the term, HITL refers to the practice of uniting human judgment and machine intelligence to create effective algorithms. “It really enhances how our customers understand all those conversations that are only on Twitter,” he explains. David is amazing at illuminating concepts that are often hidden and easy to take for granted. Highlights, inspiration and key learnings: How human curators can improve digital productsWhat the machines can never take from usThe role of taste and individualism in all of thisHiring for HITL curationThe pendulum swings back to hands-on curation👋 Say "hi" to David. 🔎 Browse the companion Storyboard to get the episode, plus David’s own curated culture picks.➕ This podcast was created by Flipboard, the popular social magazine, where enthusiasts are curating stories they recommend across thousands of interests. Learn more. 

“Curation is a specific mode of creativity that's more based in analogical thinking and juxtaposition and categorization. The best curators are critics too … It's not enough to be a great subject matter expert. You also have to have a deep understanding of the spheres of art, aesthetics, commerce and technology, and be someone who's constantly thinking about those things through multiple lenses.” — Meg Tarquinio, PhDIf you use Spotify, you know that the platform is a delightful mixture of human and algorithmic curation. There’s even a term for this: “algotorial.” Part editorial and part algorithmic, this approach combines the best of both worlds to create addictive listening experiences. But try to look under the hood, and it’s often hard to tell what’s really going on. That’s why it was thrilling to find Spotify’s former Head of Curation Strategy, Meg Tarquinio, to talk about the craft of curation. Meg speaks thoughtfully as a curation practitioner, strategist, and manager, as well as an academic who thinks deeply about these things. Highlights, inspiration and key learnings: The responsibility of curation and the ‘anxiety of influence’Spotify playlists and the algotorial approachHuman vs algorithmic curation, and the myth of tasteAdapting to new curation models and landscapesWhy working on a tarmac is a terrific job for a grad student👋 Say "hi" to Meg. 🔎 Browse the companion Storyboard to get the episode, plus Meg’s own curated culture picks.➕ This podcast was created by Flipboard, the popular social magazine, where enthusiasts are curating stories they recommend across thousands of interests. Learn more.

“For several years now, I have just kind of felt like I'm not seeing what I really want to see in my feed, despite following friends and strangers whose taste and opinions I care about…The algorithm doesn't really get it. The big motivation for me is: humans just do stuff better. Some things just can't be automated.” — Ann FriedmanThe algorithm doesn’t know that you can’t be put in a box. That your curiosity knows no bounds. That you don’t want to exist in a filter bubble.That feeling drove journalist/author Ann Friedman to create her own newsletter, “The Ann Friedman Weekly.” This is a newsletter that I drop everything to read every Friday morning when it hits my inbox, and 55,000 fellow subscribers no doubt agree. In this interview, Ann unpacks how she makes it and reveals herself to be an incredibly kind and generous curator in the process. Highlights, inspiration and key learnings in this episode:Curating “The Ann Friedman Weekly” from A-ZConsidering the role of technologyHow journalistic skills help curatorsCuration ethicsRunning a fellowship program👋 Say "hi" to Ann. 🔎 Browse the companion Storyboard to get the episode, plus Ann’s own favorite newsletters and her curated culture picks.➕ This podcast was created by Flipboard, the popular social magazine, where enthusiasts are curating stories they recommend across thousands of interests. Learn more. 

“The beauty of NFTs and Web 3 is that now it's global, where you have a whole gallery in your phone or laptop. You can be your own curator without having all the background and connections that are typically in the traditional art space…Anyone can curate if they have that passion and that love for creativity and art.” — Lex Marcano, NFT GirlWith all the Web3 hype and grim headlines about the “crypto winter” we’re still in, it’s impossible to escape conversations about NFTs. The market feels chaotic because it is.  Curation is one way to impose order in a volatile landscape, and anyone can play the game. In fact, there’s never been more of a need for guides to hold our hands.Lex Marcano, aka NFT Girl, is one of those people. She’s an early mover into NFT curation and has emerged as one of the premier voices in the space. An adept community builder, Lex is doing her bit to make Web3 a saner place and seems like she’s having a lot of fun while she’s at it — naysayers be damned!Highlights, inspiration and key learnings in this episode:Curating gems in a crowded spaceNavigating the bear marketCurating NFTs for physical locationsCreating bridges to the LatinX communityCommunity building in Web3👋 Say "hi" to Lex. 🔎 Browse the companion Storyboard to get the episode, plus Lex’s curated culture picks.➕ This podcast was created by Flipboard, the popular social magazine, where enthusiasts are curating stories they recommend across thousands of interests. Learn more.

“When you host a lightweight cocktail party, you now have a way to go through life, collecting these new and interesting people and bringing them into your world…You use these parties as an audition to see who you would like to become better friends with.” — Nick Gray, creator of “The 2-Hour Cocktail Party”Whether you’re new to a place or getting on in your years, it can feel increasingly hard to make friends. But Nick Gray has devised a blueprint to change that, outlined step-by-step in his book, “The 2-Hour Cocktail Party.”Nick’s essentially created a system that’s like an audition for who gets to be your friend. It’s a way to turn even introverts into super connectors. And it's proof that when you stop being too cool to care, you’ll start connecting with people for real. At the heart of Nick’s formula is the art of curating who gets to be invited to these highly structured IRL events. In this episode, Nick deconstructs his approach to curating people for parties with solid results. It’s a great one for anyone who wants to go from being a party pooper to a party planner.Highlights, inspiration and key learnings: Nick’s 2-hour cocktail party formula (N.I.C.K.) in a nutshellCurating people for chemistryThe importance of name tags and icebreakersCurating conversations, especially in “the awkward zone”Effectively maintaining the ties you’ve cultivated👋 Say "hi" to Nick. 🔎 Browse the companion Storyboard to get the episode, plus Nick’s curated culture picks and more about his newsletter and book.➕ This podcast was created by Flipboard, the popular social magazine, where enthusiasts are curating stories they recommend across thousands of interests. Learn more.