Cetic.br discusses the production of indicators on online cultural practices

Researchers from the field exchanged experiences at a meeting at the Sesc São Paulo Research and Training Center

How to measure new cultural habits emerging from digital technologies? To analyze this issue and exchange experiences, cultural researchers gathered on Wednesday (04/19) at the Sesc Research and Training Center (CPF-Sesc) in São Paulo. Under the theme Cultural Practices and new technologies: challenges for indicator production, the meeting was held with the support of the Regional Center for Studies on the Development of the Information Society (Cetic.br), from the Brazilian Network Information Center (NIC.br). Current reference frameworks and measurements of cultural practices in Latin America and Brazil were discussed, along with the challenges to online diversity with the strengthening of large corporations in the digital field. Additionally, the event brought important insights for the TIC Culture survey project by CGI.br.

"In the last 10 years, technology has radically changed how we access and consume culture, as well as how cultural content is produced. These paradigm shifts make the investigation of this field more complex," noted Alexandre Barbosa (manager of Cetic.br). He highlighted the commitments of the United Nations member countries to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, specifically Goal 11.4 ("Strengthen efforts to protect and safeguard the world's cultural and natural heritage"), emphasizing that "culture is playing a crucial role, not only for symbolic reasons but also for its economic dimension. Talking about this Agenda and creating indicators to measure it is a necessity for the signatory governments".

The subject was further explored in the panel "Reference frameworks for indicators of cultural practices: challenges for the 2030 agenda," moderated by Alexandre. In his presentation, José Pessoa (Unesco Institute for Statistics) introduced the concepts and definitions of the 2009 UNESCO Framework for Cultural Statistics, used to define the cultural sector and allow for the harmonization of cultural variables among national surveys.

Leonardo Athias (IBGE) commented on the challenges for producing indicators considering the dimensions of online cultural practices. Regarding the labor market, for instance, one of the challenges lies at the border between amateur and professional, as reflected in the emergence of professions like youtubers. Frederico Barbosa (Ipea) also pondered the difficulties in measuring data. "How to formulate questions related to aspects of life and cultural practice? Practices are slippery, plural, multiple. Traditional questions are insufficient to fully understand these practices," he considered.

International measurements

The experiences of measuring cultural practices in other Latin American countries, alongside what has been done by the Ministry of Culture, were addressed during the event. Juan Carlos Altamirano (National Council of Culture and Arts of Chile) presented survey data on Internet usage in Chile, highlighting the cultural activities carried out by connected Chileans. Federico M. Bonazzi (Cultural Information System of Argentina) shared the conclusions of the survey on the use of ICT in Argentina, including: the expansion of cultural goods consumption via the Internet with a decrease in content downloads and an increase in streaming in the country. In Brazil, Luiz Antonio Gouveia de Oliveira (MinC) commented on the functionalities of the National Information and Cultural Indicators System (SNIIC), in the debate moderated by consultant Cristina Lins.

Measurements in Brazil

The panel dedicated to Brazilian experiences analyzed the potentials and limits of the Internet for cultural democratization. "Are we facing a tool that will allow the much-desired access and enjoyment of art and culture by the population?", questioned Isaura Botelho (Cebrap). For the specialist, researchers must verify to what extent the options and content available online translate into concrete practices. "We cannot succumb to the fascinations of technology to the point of losing sight of the objectives of policies, whether from public or private organizations, to contribute to the universe of cultural practices," she reinforced.

From binary numbers to the quantum computer, Marcos Cuzziol's (Itaú Cultural) presentation outlined an overview of the evolution of technology. Moderated by Daniela Ribas (CPF Sesc), the panel also featured Ricardo Meirelles (JLeiva), who presented data from the survey on cultural habits of São Paulo residents. On the occasion, Márcia Costa Rodrigues (National Department of Sesc) listed Sesc's cultural activities, emphasizing that "technology is fundamental to provide access to the content produced by the entity to the most diverse audiences".

Threats to diversity

Under the theme "The new Gatekeepers: technological platforms, cultural consumption, and diversity," João Brant (associate researcher at Observacom) listed the threats to cultural diversity and online pluralism – among them, content removal without court orders and distortions generated by the ordering of information. "There is an increasing volume of information online, but access is increasingly mediated by intermediaries. It's a paradox. We have more information available and less information consumed," he reflected.

The principles decalogue for Internet governance and use by the Brazilian Internet Steering Committee (CGI.br) was presented, specifically regarding diversity (Cultural diversity must be respected and preserved, and its expression stimulated, without imposing beliefs, customs, or values) by Juliano Cappi (CGI.br Technical Advisory) and Carlos Affonso Pereira de Souza (ITS - Institute of Technology and Society). Both emphasized that the text addresses crucial issues such as dignity, autonomy, and democracy, and not only deals with respecting diversity but also its preservation and encouragement to thrive.

Another topic discussed at the meeting was the "filter bubble effect" (which is the customization of content displayed on social networks according to users' preferences), pointed out by Brant and Carlos Affonso as one of the risks to diversity on the web. "The perception that the world agrees with your viewpoints is a springboard for radicalization, leading to two outcomes: fake news and hate speech," emphasized Carlos Affonso. In the researcher's opinion, promoting online education and critical thinking is one of the solutions, as is developing artificial intelligence that identifies such content.

This content was automatically translated with the support of artificial intelligence.