Time to simplify the frame!
When everyone's an expert
Many people are tired of - and skeptical of - “experts” these days.
That can be seen as a dangerous trend, casting doubt on science and facts. But it also really begs the question who is an “expert”. Everyone's an expert on their own experience of life and their hopes for the future. Part of the problem is there is not enough space in which people’s views are heard and taken into account. Often people are approached with supposed “expert” views, or with tokenistic frames of engagement, that seem disassociated or disconnected from their own realities.
Yes, there is the global sphere of social media. Yet given the monetization of algorithms it plays to certain voices being amplified and others being crowded out (a performance economy that rewards conflict), and despite what could be a glorious diversity of perspectives in a weird way instead often reinforces over-simplification and single stories over multiple stories.
More and more I’m convinced of the value of creating space to listen to people’s stories and perspectives as individuals, yet with broad simple frames that hold them together - from which points of connection emerge, and from which change in hearts, minds and action can begin. It’s an approach I took with “30th Ave - A Year in the Life of a Street” and am taking forward in two other ways.
One is through the upcoming 2026 World Cup which will be hosted by Mexico, Canada, and the United States.
There are the major overarching stories that will be in the spotlight - how tightened immigration policies and travel bans in the US come up against the very idea of a “world” cup, the likely disruptions to matches from heat and extreme weather, the crazy scale and inequalities of mega-events, in this case with 48 national teams competing.
There will also be the individual experiences connected to the event. Experiences of people working in the stadiums, or behind crowded bars, or driving taxis while listening to a game on the radio, or accompanying a team as part of its entourage. Experiences of fans watching with friends or family in their homes and cafes (around 1.5 billion people watched the final of the last World Cup), and of diaspora communities in host cities and beyond seeing the opportunity to celebrate their culture and food.
I’ve set up “World Cup Memories” as a place for sharing these experiences, whether good or bad, and wherever they take place. The stories that have begun to come through already start unravelling simplicity, and opening up new points of connection. (Share yours!).
I’m similarly learning the value of a clear yet simple frame to create space for creativity in a youth media initiative I’m running with teenagers in four of the World Cup host cities (Guadalajara, Los Angeles, New York-New Jersey, and Toronto).
We’ve had sessions on “Whose Story?”, “Sports, our neighborhoods and cities”, “Sports and accountability” and “The future of sports media”. The unique stories the young participants have created are inspiring: from an interview with a Oaxacan basketball coach in Los Angeles, to an honest essay about learning to put aside the dream of being a professional athlete and to appreciate what emerges in its place.
(Over and over I’m reminded of the power of specificity over generalities, something else that’s often lost in “expert” spaces).
The second initiative is NYC 51 to 1, which is asking New Yorkers throughout the five boroughs (from District 51 in Staten Island, through Brooklyn, Queens and the Bronx, to district 1 in Manhattan), about a building or place that means a lot to them, and what they would like to see in the future.
On one level, this approach shifts the frame to celebrate what already exists, rather than an urban planning and development dynamic that often begins with problems to be solved. It opens a window for imagination. And ideally it also helps to strengthen agency: emphasizing that whoever you are you have valuable expertise on the place where you live.