ABSTRACT
This chapter examines how the changes that have occurred in digital media technologies outside cultural institutions have played a role in bringing about an interactive and participatory turn across the museum and cultural sector. The methodology used to study this trend is outlined and detailed, and the scope of the research is defined. The interactive and participatory turn is evidenced through dialogue covering an array of international industry practices, which encourage cultural visitors to use their smartphones or similar devices to talk back to the once-authoritative formulations of culture. The chapter highlights that algorithms are creating the potential for museums to measure the impacts of culture and create new ways of making sense of collections. This demonstrates that making collections available to digital platforms for the purpose of enhancing visitor engagement can blur the distinction between museums and computer systems, raising new concerns. Through exploring the implications of collections being made available to digital platforms for the purpose of enhancing visitor engagement – virtual and physical – the chapter asserts the need for a more critical lens through which to regard its adoption into a new media economy and puts forward a framework for examining these shifts within the following four chapters.
