Internet Archive to host conference about saving online news

The Internet Archive will host the “Dodging the Memory Hole” (DTMH) forum Nov 15 and 16th.  This will be the fifth in the series of outreach efforts over the past four years. Presented by the Donald W. Reynolds Journalism Institute, with support from the Institute of Museum and Library Services, the conference will address issues related to archiving and access to online news.

We are happy to be able to present a range of people, and projects, involved in a wide cross-section of activities related to news archiving, representing local, national and world-wide efforts.  As a bonus, our special guest speaker, Daniel Ellsberg, will highlight the value of the First Amendment and the need to make sure the public has free access to accurate information in the digital age.

News has been called the “first rough draft of history.”  Some think the risk to this history is at an all time high.  The possibility exists that large portions of our cultural record, as captured by journalists and others, will be lost forever if no action is taken to provide long-term solutions for access.  The loss of digital records is happening at an unprecedented pace – faster than the loss of comparable print and analog resources.  Access and preservation are two sides of the same coin in this regard.

The Internet Archive has become increasingly important as a means of collecting and preserving online news content.  As if the challenges of capturing more traditional news sources such as newspapers and television stations aren’t enough, the rise of social media as major distribution channels has made it even more difficult to address the complex set of issues involved.  Since many of the challenges end up being technical in nature, bringing Internet Archive staff together with the DTMH community offers the chance to identify problems and approach solutions to some of the stumbling blocks we’ve encountered at this point in the journey.

Journalists, memory institutions, technologists, historians, political scientists and anyone with an interest in having long-term access to a trustworthy and accurate record of life in the digital age will find this gathering of interest.  I urge anyone interested in this urgent and important issue to come join us at the Internet Archive on Nov. 15-16.  We have a limited number of seats available.  Registration is required, but it is free. If you want register in time to allow us to order food for you, please register by Monday, Oct. 30.  Final cutoff for registrations is Nov. 5.  I hope to see you there!

To learn more about the conference click here.

To register for the conference click here.

8 thoughts on “Internet Archive to host conference about saving online news

  1. Sanjeev Nanda

    Well, I would say that this is a much required initiative which is absolutely important to ensure that the information is available to people and not lost. In the present digital age, the public should have access to accurate information, that’s all.

  2. november 2017

    As if the challenges of capturing more traditional news sources such as newspapers and television stations aren’t enough, the rise of social media as major distribution channels has made it even more difficult to address the complex set of issues involved.

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