Carrie Bickner

Do You Remember Rock N’ Roll Radio?

I was part of the garage-band days of blogging, back when hitting “publish” felt like a small act of rebellion and a way to connect with people across the world. Blogs weren’t just platforms—they were personal, raw, and full of possibility. Those early days taught me how powerful publishing tools could be, but also how much responsibility they carry.

Today, that raw, creative energy of blogging is being reshaped by generative AI. And generative AI is using the materials bloggers create to shape itself. Blogs, essays, and even images are being scraped into training datasets, often without the creator’s consent. As someone who’s worked on building content and asset management systems, I know how these tools can either empower creators or quietly strip away their control.

MARTI (Metadata for AI Responsibility, Transparency, and Integrity) is a framework designed to turn the tide. It gives creators a way to protect their intellectual property, control how it’s used, and even monetize their work. In this paper, I’ll explore how blogging platforms—key players in what I call he Creative Content Ecosystem—can¹ use MARTI to safeguard creators and establish a new ethical standard for AI.

Just Being Careful: Protecting Bloggers’ IP

Back in the early 2000s, blogging felt like being part of a punk band. It was scrappy, creative, and sometimes a little chaotic. We weren’t just creating content; we were experimenting, figuring out what worked, and building something new.

Blogging platforms were like our instruments—they made it easier to share our work with the world. But they weren’t perfect. Even back then, you could see how the design of a tool shaped what you could do with it. Fast-forward to today, and those same platforms are facing new challenges. Generative AI has created a world where the very content we publish can be taken, repurposed, and folded into massive datasets without our permission.

This is why blogging platforms need to step up. By integrating MARTI, they can give creators a way to maintain that creative, DIY spirit while protecting their work in a rapidly evolving digital landscape.

New Morning: Bloggers as the Starting Point

Bloggers are the perfect starting point for MARTI because we’re used to doing things for ourselves. We don’t expect someone else to advocate for us, but we do expect the tools we use to give us control.

Here’s why bloggers are the “low-hanging fruit” for developers:

• Shared Tools: Most bloggers use platforms like WordPress, Medium, and Substack. These platforms already have the infrastructure to support metadata embedding.
• Valuable Content: Blogs are rich in structured, long-form content—exactly the kind of material AI models crave.
• Unified Challenges: Bloggers face similar issues, like unlicensed use of their work and lost opportunities to monetize their content.

By starting with bloggers, developers can focus on a well-defined use case, test MARTI’s effectiveness, and then expand it to other creators.

I’ll Be Your Mirror: What MARTI Can Do for Blogging Platforms

Blogging platforms are uniquely positioned to protect their users. With MARTI, they can offer tools that don’t just react to AI’s challenges but actively empower creators.

• Metadata Embedding: Automatically attach metadata to each post, specifying ownership, permissions, and licensing terms.
• Licensing Tools: Allow bloggers to set licensing terms, including fees for AI training, and track how their content is used.
• Transparency: Embed unique identifiers so bloggers can see where their content ends up and ensure proper attribution.
• Permission Controls: Give bloggers intuitive toggles to allow or deny AI use of their content.

These features wouldn’t just protect creators—they’d also show that blogging platforms are serious about supporting their users.

Touch Of Grey: Why This Matters

When I worked on content and asset management systems, I saw how much power these tools have. They can either make it easier for creators to share and manage their work or limit their control and opportunities. What’s happening now with AI feels like déjà vu. Content creators are being treated as resources, not stakeholders.

Blogging platforms have the chance to rewrite that story. By adopting MARTI, they can flip the narrative, creating tools that put creators back in the driver’s seat.

Those of us with established roots in the Creative Content Ecosystem are well versed in these IP problems. We also have the experience and infrastructure to address them.

A Better Future: Expanding Beyond Bloggers

Bloggers are a great starting point, but MARTI has the potential to benefit all kinds of creators. Once the framework proves its value in blogging platforms, it could expand to:

• Journalists: Ensuring investigative work is credited and fairly licensed.
• Educators: Protecting lesson plans and academic content.
• Visual Artists: Embedding permissions and licensing terms directly into digital artwork.

The broader Creative Content Ecosystem—platforms like Substack, Patreon, and even Tumblr—can adopt MARTI to create a unified, ethical approach to IP management.

Not Afraid: A Call to Action

This isn’t just about metadata. It’s about respect. It’s about valuing the people who create the content that makes the internet worth visiting.

To the developers and decision-makers who build blogging platforms: you have an incredible opportunity. By adopting MARTI, you can lead the way in protecting creators, setting ethical standards, and building trust in AI.

And to my fellow creators: let’s demand better. The tools we use should work for us, not against us.

Future People: Why MARTI?

MARTI isn’t just a technical framework—it’s a promise. A promise that creators’ work will be respected, that their voices will matter, and that the platforms they trust will have their backs.

I’ve seen what happens when systems are built without creators in mind. I’ve also seen the incredible things that happen when creators are empowered. MARTI represents the latter. It’s a chance to build a future where creativity and innovation thrive together, and where everyone—bloggers, artists, educators, and beyond—can share their work without fear of exploitation.

Let’s start with bloggers. Let’s start with MARTI.

Children
Take or leave it
Come, people
You got to give a little, get a little
And see it
Like future people
(Alabama Shakes, 2015, Track 4)

Further Reading on the Creative Content Ecosystem

I am drawing upon several ways of looking at content ecosystems:

• • Academic Research
  Wang, X., & Su, X. (2018). Navigating Value Co-Creation in Entertainment: A Netnography Study on the Wang Hong Ecosystem. Pacific Asia Conference on Information Systems (PACIS). Available at: https://aisel.aisnet.org/pacis2018/234
• Industry Analysis
  Dhital, N. (2021). Bridging the Value Gap Between Content Creators and Digital Platforms. SSRN. Available at: https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3903986
• Corporate Usage
  PAKT. (n.d.). About Us. Available at: https://pakt.co/about