CHENNAI: After helping the prestigious Metropolitan Museum of Arts to take the digital route tech journalist-turned-evangelist and administrator Sreenath Sreenivasan (46) will now help New Yorkers access city data easier as the city’s new Chief Digital Officer.
“To move our city’s digital ecosystem into the 21st century, we need to ensure our city’s resources are at the fingertips of every New Yorker. With Sreenivasan’s wealth of experience… he will work to promote transparency, access, and progressive values with our digital tools, helping spread access,” said New York Mayor Bill de Blasio, making the announcement on Monday.
Son of former diplomat TP Sreenivasan, ‘Sree’ Sreenivasan was the first Chief Digital Officer of the museum, popularly known as The Met, for the last three years, where he ‘helped redefine what digital means to museums’, said Met director Tom Campbell and president Daniel Weiss in a note announcing his departure.
During his stint, he oversaw initiatives including The Met App and The Artist Project among many, and also linked the museum, the biggest in the US and arguably among the finest in the world, connect to new audiences by harnessing the power of new technology. He also led the museum to engage with larger number of people through platforms including Facebook Live, and China's WeChat and Weibo.
“In his new role, Sreenivasan will direct the Office of Digital Strategy (NYC Digital) to launch digital products that encourage civic engagement, increase government transparency, and support New York City's thriving tech ecosystem,” said the official announcement by the City of New York.
“There are so many opportunities to extend the Mayor’s Digital Playbook, collaborate closely across various sectors and help bring more startups here,” the statement quoted him as saying. Sree Sreenivasan is now in India, where he is touring a number of cities including Mumbai, Delhi, Bengaluru and Chennai to conduct free social media workshop along with Twitter.
Last October, he was appointed to the Commission on Public Information and Communication (COPIC), where he worked to improve access and awareness on city information online. Before joining the Met, he was a faculty at the Columbia Journalism School for about two decades, and was also its first Chief Digital Officer.
Sree is a history graduate from St. Stephen’s College in Delhi and holds a Master’s degree in Journalism from Columbia University in 1993.