Originally posted at MRM London page on Slideshare: I delivered this presentation as a post-dinner conversation starter for fund managers attending a Cofunds event in November 2009.

2. So who’s afraid of Barbra Streisand?

3. In 2003 Streisand attempted to sue photographer Kenneth Alderman and pictopia.com for $50 million

4. In 2003 Streisand attempted to sue photographer Kenneth Alderman and pictopia.com for $50 million Streisand claimed the publication of this picture – as part of a 12,000 image archive hosted by the California Coastal Records Project – risked her personal privacy and security

5. The Project countersued and Streisand lost

6. The Project countersued and Streisand lost But by pursuing legal action, Streisand attracted public interest and attention. 420,000 users visited the Project’s image of her Malibu home during the month following the filing of the lawsuit

7. And that’s ‘The Streisand Effect’

8. And that’s ‘The Streisand Effect’ A phrase coined by Techdirt founder Mike Masnick

9. And that’s ‘The Streisand Effect’ A phrase coined by Techdirt founder Mike Masnick A social media phenomenon where attempts to restrict accessibility of information or content sparks an – often exponential – increase in public attention

10. ‘The mob doesn’t think’ Spencer Tracy in Fury

11. But – more often than not – there is remarkable power in the collective wisdom of crowds ‘The mob doesn’t think’ Spencer Tracy in Fury

12. #trafigura

13. #trafigura On 13 October 2009 a Swiss-based multinational trading in base-metals and energy sought to prevent the reporting – by The Guardian newspaper – of a Parliamentary Question...

14. The peaks in the graphs show the instances of web searches and mentions of the phrase ‘Trafigura’. It clearly shows the huge lift in volumes as news spread of the attempt to suppress the story.

15. Trafigura will become a milestone event in the potency of social media to harness popular opposition to the intervention of private individuals or institutions in matters of public interest

16. ‘The more you tighten your grip. The more star systems will slip through your fingers’ Carrie Fisher in Star Wars

17. It’s not your brand anymore Your brand exists in the public sphere, so failure to play an active and useful role in wider society is anti-social

18. It’s not your brand anymore Your brand exists in the public sphere, so failure to play an active and useful role in wider society is anti-social Shut up and share Well do you enjoy the company of people who only talk about themselves?

19. It’s not your brand anymore Your brand exists in the public sphere, so failure to play an active and useful role in wider society is anti-social Shut up and share Well do you enjoy the company of people who only talk about themselves? The medium is the message Reputation rests on how your brand engages in conversation and not what it has to say

20. With all that in mind, how does this statement stack up?

21. The general public needs to learn to ‘tolerate inequality as a way to achieve greater prosperity for all’? Lord Griffiths, Vice Chairman Goldman Sachs International 21 October 2009 With all that in mind, how does this statement stack up?

22. www.twitter.com/ianthomas_mrm Slideshare: http://bit.ly/2Vfk52

23. Sources / Acknowledgements Image of Barbra Streisand: Photos by Mavis photostream hosted at Flickr (http://bit.ly/3Uq11C) 2-3 Image of Streisand home: Kenneth Alderman; pictopia.com; Californian Coastal Records Project http://www.californiacoastline.org Content based on Wikipedia summary of ‘The Streisand Effect’ (http://bit.ly/1eoTFZ) Image of Spencer Tracey – ‘Life’ image hosted at Google (http://bit.ly/489wit) 14 Trafigura trending data: Google Trends(Top); Trendistic.com (Bottom) Image of Carrie Fisher – Jimivr’s photostream hosted at Flickr (http://bit.ly/4lD4oF) Image of crowd: James Cridland’s photostream hosted at Flickr (http://bit.ly/14ewZW) The phrase ‘the medium is the message’ was first articulated by Marshall McLuhan in his book ‘Understanding media : the extensions of man’ (London: Routledge, 1964) (Current imprint: http://bit.ly/3afEIk 21 Paraphrased from news report at guardian.co.uk (http://bit.ly/1O5PYC)