The Art of Curation

Pastor, author, and columnist Dan Darling talks about how he curates ideas and stories for his sermons, how he would curate the Bible for beginners, and his thoughts on what Jesus would curate. He explores the timelessness and relevance of the Bible, tackles misperceptions about Christians, and shares recommendations for books, movies, and podcasts.

Uri Bram, co-founder of The Browser, discusses the art of curation, their criteria for selecting articles that will remain interesting in the long term, challenges in curating paywalled content, and the use of their YouTube channel to connect with a new audience. The podcast also includes recommendations for reading, watching, and listening.

“We really want to help people discover music that can help them feel a particular set of feelings in a way that we believe is incredibly potent. For me personally, that’s kind of my guiding light in how I decide on what music actually stands out and what music will be able to touch many people from within.” — Jonathan TzouJonathan Tzou lives at the intersection of music, curation and entrepreneurship. As a fervent music fan and co-founder of electronic dance music site Dancing Astronaut, he is immersed in the world of EDM and speaks eloquently about how you might sift through a seemingly infinite number of tracks and mixes to recommend the very best for an audience. He’s also the founder and CMO of Rupie.io, a platform that leverages the superpowers of thousands of curated creators to help build outstanding games and digital experiences. Where these roles meet is the foundation of this conversation, as Jonathan speaks from the heart about feeling and how it is a guiding principle no matter what you’re curating. Highlights, inspiration and key learnings:Connecting as music fansElectronic music: feeling, production styles, pioneersThe power of dance and letting goTurning a passion for dance music into a communityWhere to start when curating the huge universe of EDMThe process of “micro A&R”Identifying the threads of human emotion and the role of emotional resonance in curationThe tipping point on timeliness as a curatorLeveraging recommendation engines for music discoveryEssential outlets for finding out about good new musicBest curated music festivals and why you should try new thingsApplying curation principles to running a companyCultivating presence / music is meditation👋 Say "hi" to JT!🔎 Browse this Storyboard to get the episode itself, plus the sites Jonathan still uses for music discovery as well as his own culture picks.➕This podcast was created by Flipboard, where enthusiasts are curating stories they recommend across thousands of interests. Learn more.  

“A top-down view is: someone's going to tell me what's cool, and that's not how it works anymore. It's trickle up, where the curator is the one who builds the audience and curates what's cool. If the audience comes, it comes from the community. And that's why it's really exciting: it doesn't rely on someone who has status or money to make these things reach scale.” — Gaby GoldbergWhen people talk about Web3 and the metaverse, it feels like we’re moving into a new era, one governed by new rules of ownership and interconnectivity, where we can all take part in a new economy online. But where does curation fit into that future?Investor Gaby Goldberg has one of the clearest-eyed views of how curation, culture, identity and ownership all fit together in this brave new world. She’s written several seminal posts at gaby.mirror.xyz — articles that themselves curate ideas into a fresh understanding of how tastemaking is now “trickle up” and who helped us get here (Kanye). Highlights, inspiration and key learnings:What is the difference between a creator and a curatorThe best curation needs a human touchThe movement towards more niche communitiesHow to find curators you respect and trustOrganizing ideas for written piecesThe psychology behind the need to curateWhat this new market of creators as curators will look likeHow curators can inspire trustUnderstanding the new universe of curation, Web3 and DAOs — where to startWhy choose Mirror as a publishing platformWhy curation will be more important in the metaverseThe difference between Web3 and the metaverseCurating the people around you👋 Say hi to Gaby!🔎 Browse the companion Storyboard to get the episode itself, plus the sources Gaby mentions and her own culture picks. ➕ This podcast was created by Flipboard, where enthusiasts are curating stories they recommend across thousands of interests. Learn more. 

Steve Watson, founder and curator of Stack, discusses the joy of browsing print magazines and the art of magazine making in the digital age. He explores the process of curating magazines for the Stack subscription service, emphasizing the importance of unique perspectives and the element of surprise. Watson also shares insights into organizing and selecting magazines, and highlights Safar, a magazine in Beirut affected by the explosion, which recently released a powerful issue.

Julia Lu, The Collector, talks about democratizing collecting, curating diverse perspectives, and sourcing content. They discuss their personal relationship to collecting and expanding the collection with contemporary artists. The podcast covers curating for education, tracking ideas and sources, and Flipboard's role in content strategy.

Dave Pell, creator of NextDraft, shares his insights on curation, the power of email, and his pun-filled writing process. He discusses the origins of NextDraft and the impact of news cycles on readership. The podcast also explores his book, 'Please Scream Inside Your Heart', and personal picks for books, movies, TV shows, and podcasts. The significance of email and favorite newsletters are also discussed.

“I always get really excited when someone who has access to any possible new piece of clothing buys something from the past that we've chosen. That's a really exciting step forward for vintage. It's the most ethical way of shopping, and chances are no one else is going to have the same thing that you have.” — Brandon Veloria Giordano of James VeloriaIf you’ve ever trekked to the James Veloria vintage store in downtown Manhattan, you might think you took a wrong turn. Tucked away in a Chinatown mall, the shop is a glittery jewel box of clothes with as much personality as the proprietors themselves. By making it to James Veloria, you instantly become part of a community with other shoppers who also had enough savvy to make it there. Badge earned!In this episode, the store's owners, Collin James Weber and Brandon Veloria Giordano, talk to us about the art of curating vintage clothes for their business and for fun. Highlights, inspiration and key learnings:How they turned a passion into a businessHow they track trends and inspirationHow they find vintage gems to sellHow they ‘remix’ those items in the storeCreating a community among customersWhat people misunderstand about vintageThrift store curation tipsBeing in business with your partnerHow COVID-19 is changing fashionBest cities for vintage shopping👋Say hi to Brandon and Collin!🔎Browse the companion Storyboard to get the episode itself, plus the books, movies, Instagram accounts and other cultural artifacts that Brandon and Collin love.➕This podcast was created by Flipboard, where enthusiasts are curating stories they recommend across thousands of interests. Head over to our website to learn more.

“The Latin term 'cura' means ‘concern’ or ‘study’ or figuring out different approaches to pulling together things. It also relates to healing, which I find kind of amusing, that the term ‘cure’ and ‘curator’ are tangentially associated. Like you're healing by pulling together information.” — DJ SpookyPaul Miller, aka DJ Spooky, is the ultimate creator: he’s a composer, a DJ, a multimedia artist, an editor, an author, and the curator of one of Flipboard’s most interesting magazines, “Semantic Infiltration.” He’s completely immersed in environmental and social issues and creates art to press those issues into the public consciousness. He’s also Yale’s Artist in Residence this year. Paul seems to think deeply about everything — even his green tea selection! — and his intellectual and artistic curiosity have no bounds. His sources and references themselves create a canon for the avant-garde artist and those who want to be.Highlights, inspiration and key learnings:Etymology of the word “curation”How he thinks about curationLiving in a recommendation engine ecosystemThe thinking behind “Semantic Infiltration” and his  book, “Digital Fictions”Using trustworthy sources when writing a bookTurning data into artHow we can be more intentional about our choicesHow curating music is different from curating contentHis media diet and routineWhere other social platforms fit into his consumption/curationOpen source as 'the best way for humanity to move forward'How the evolution of his art has paralleled the evolution of technologyCurating his own catalogOn democracy and moving between worlds👋 Say hi to DJ Spooky!🔎 Browse the companion Storyboard  of the writers, thought leaders and artists he admires. ➕ This podcast was created by Flipboard, where enthusiasts are curating stories they recommend across thousands of interests. Head over to our website to learn more.

“I came to realize, over 20 years, that food was much more important than what you cooked for dinner or what cool ingredient you were into or what groovy restaurant you’re going to. And gradually what I wrote about...became the bigger picture in food. I don't want to leave cooking behind; cooking matters. But it's a small part of the food picture and talking about that is really important to us.” — Mark BittmanMark Bittman, Melissa McCart and the team at The Bittman Project are building a new kind of food media empire — one that can only be born in the post-2020 era. Naturally, recipes and cooking advice are at the heart of why people might subscribe to their newsletter or listen to Mark’s podcast. But their strategy is for you to come for the cooking and stay for the impact, whether that’s learning how to eat less meat, expanding the voices you might hear from in food, or bucking conventional wisdom in and out of the kitchen. Highlights, inspiration and key learnings:How Mark developed his brand and expertise around food after he left the New York TimesHow Melissa helped to shape The Bittman Project as editorHow current issues, like the coronavirus, climate change, and racial injustice, impact their content strategyThe criteria for what’s curated into The Bittman Project Substack newsletterThe values of The Bittman ProjectWhat Mark and Melissa read to keep up on food trends and the industryHow the art of curation comes into play when planning and writing a cookbook like “How to Cook Everything”How they curate their teamHow they curate guests and content for the “Food With Mark Bittman” podcastHow they use data to inform content decisionsWhat’s challenging about running The Bittman ProjectHow a home cook should curate their kitchenIdeas for curating your grocery shoppingOlive oil, demystified👋 Say hi to Mark and Melissa!🔎 Browse the Storyboard of all their recommendations, including the cookbooks, food TV shows, and podcasts they love.➕ This podcast was created by Flipboard, where enthusiasts are curating stories they recommend across thousands of interests. Head over to our website to learn more.