The Curation Imperative: Why Content Quality Matters More Than Quantity in Afrocentric Streaming
From Content Flood to Cultural Stewardship
The Content Flood Crisis
In the era of streaming, we are witnessing a crisis in content quality and a flood in content quantity, where more content is being created than ever before, and yet, it is becoming increasingly difficult to find quality content that is meaningful and worthwhile. The situation is worsened by the fact that content creators and streaming services are competing on the basis of quantity, where Netflix is churning out hundreds of content pieces every year, and on YouTube, every minute, there are 500 hours of content being uploaded.
In the case of Afrocentric content, the issue is worsened by the quality crisis, where there are a number of low-budget content pieces, documentaries that are well-intentioned but poorly executed, and content that promotes rather than challenges stereotypes.
iSabiTV: The Solution to the Content Flood Crisis
At iSabiTV, we are committed to quality content and are taking a radical approach to content curation, where we prioritize quality over quantity and view content curation as a community service.
The Philosophy Behind Cultural Curation
Curation as a Community Service
While content curation is often thought to be elitist and exclusive, we at iSabiTV view content curation as a community service, where we provide content that is worthy of the intelligence and heritage of our audience, consisting of parents, educators, and members of the diaspora community.
Our Quality Standards
At iSabiTV, we review all content on the basis of the following parameters: Cultural authenticity, quality of production, educational value, and suitability for a particular age group in the case of family content.
The Anti-Algorithmic Stance
Mainstream media services utilize algorithms to curate content feeds, which creates a filter bubble that reinforces existing preferences. iSabiTV takes a different approach by curating content that is provocative and introduces users to new information that can broaden their horizons.
The Curation Process: Behind the Scenes
Submission and Review
Creator Submissions
iSabiTV works with filmmakers and creators of user-generated content by providing a systematic process that verifies rights, provides a statement of cultural context, and specifies technical requirements.
Community Sourcing
iSabiTV reaches out to community leaders and experts to get recommendations on content.
Academic Partnerships
iSabiTV has partnered with educational institutions and research organizations to get access to documentaries and educational content.
Review Ecosystem
Cultural Review
iSabiTV has employed cultural consultants to review content for authenticity and respect.
Educational Review
Educational experts review content for its potential value as a teaching tool.
Technical Review
iSabiTV has a technical review process that focuses on the suitability of the production quality for its intended purpose. Authenticity is more important than quality.
However, curation is not a one-time process. iSabiTV tracks audience engagement, educational use, and community feedback to determine whether or not to remove content that was previously approved but has since been deemed problematic by community feedback. Similarly, content that was previously deemed unsuccessful may be retained if it has important cultural preservation value.
Curatorial Categories: Organizing Cultural Knowledge
Thematic Collections
Unlike other media outlets that group media into generic categories like genre or type, iSabiTV groups media into culturally significant categories like Historical Trajectories (e.g., "Independence Movements," "Diaspora Journeys"), Linguistic Ecosystems (e.g., by linguistic family and proficiency level), and Regional Portraits (geographic mapping with national and diaspora nuance).
Featured and Spotlight Programming
Curator's Picks feature exceptional works with curator-written descriptions. Seasonal and commemorative programming is also available in line with cultural calendars worldwide. Emerging Creator Spotlights feature emerging creators with curator-written descriptions that connect emerging creators' works to broader cultural movements.
The Economics of Quality
The economics of radical curation require sustainable economics to be in place. The curated business model allows curated content to generate attention and revenue, institutional licenses to generate revenue for creators investing in quality content, and curatorial identification to connect creators with funding sources and contests. The economics of quality curation encourage audience loyalty—because audiences know that iSabiTV content meets quality standards, audiences return to iSabiTV to consume curated content. This is especially important to family and educational audiences.
Challenges and Critiques
The concern of exclusion of valuable content has been raised in the critique of curation. iSabiTV has taken this into account by providing transparent criteria for curation, support for creators in the development of their work, and UGC routes for new content of cultural value. There will be some culturally valuable content that will not attain high viewership numbers. iSabiTV has "preservation priorities" for this content, keeping it on the platform for its cultural value, funded by the more popular content.
Conclusion: Curation as Cultural Stewardship
In a world of content excess, curation is not elitism; it is stewardship. The focus on quality rather than quantity on iSabiTV is a reflection of our responsibility to the communities we serve, to provide content that educates, inspires, and preserves in an honest and authentic way.
For the viewer, this means that every hour spent on iSabiTV will be an hour of valuable engagement. For the creators, this means that quality work will receive the recognition and financial reward it deserves. For culture, this means that digital preservation prioritizes substance over virality.
The future of Afrocentric streaming is not more content. The future of Afrocentric streaming is better curation.
