Establishing Processing Priorities: Recommendations from a 2017 Study of Practices in US Repositories

Building upon archival scholarship and previous solutions addressing backlog collections, this study seeks to identify a comprehensive, integrated, and effective strategy to establish and maintain processing priorities. This study is based on supporting research, which includes the results of a survey of archivists and the findings of five focus group discussions about processing priorities. Using these findings, the authors (a) consider whether this focus on an old problem has motivated archivists to find innovative solutions; (b) determine whether archivists are using these tools; (c) consider whether and how archivists have changed processing priority practices and policies; and (d) seek to clarify current metrics to establish overall processing priorities

Privacy, Restriction, and Access: Legal and Ethical Dilemmas

This paper examines the intersection of privacy and access in archival repositories. Archival repositories are well known for containing restricted material, and for protecting the privacy of the donors. This literature review examines the need for restricted material from both legal and ethical standpoints, as well as discussing culturally sensitive materials while determining what archives and libraries can do to protect both themselves and their donors while enhancing accessibility and freedom of information

Exploring the information behaviour of users of Welsh Newspapers Online through web log analysis

Purpose – Webometric techniques have been applied to many websites and online resources, especially since the launch of Google Analytics (GA). To date, though, there has been little consideration of information behaviour in relation to digitised newspaper collections. The purpose of this paper is to address a perceived gap in the literature by providing an account of user behaviour in the newly launched Welsh Newspapers Online (WNO). Design/methodology/approach – The author collected webometric data for WNO using GA and web server content logs. These were analysed to identify patterns of engagement and user behaviour, which were then considered in relation to existing information behaviour. Findings – Use of WNO, while reminiscent of archival information seeking, can be understood as centring on the web interface rather than the digitised material. In comparison to general web browsing, users are much more deeply engaged with the resource. This engagement incorporates reading online, but users’ information seeking utilises website search and browsing functionality rather than filtering in newspaper material. Information seeking in digitised newspapers resembles the model of the “user” more closely than that of the “reader”, a value-laden distinction which needs further unpacking. Research limitations/implications – While the behaviour discussed in this paper is likely to be more widely representative, a larger longitudinal data set would increase the study’s significance. Additionally, the methodology of this paper can only tell us what users are doing, and further research is needed to identify the drivers for this behaviour. Originality/value – This study provides important insights into the underinvestigated area of digitised newspaper collections, and shows the importance of webometric methods in analysing online user behaviour

From Paper to Digital Trail: Collections on the Semantic Web

Historical research on World War II and the impact of large-scale violence largely depends on the availability of source materials: diaries, newspapers, eyewitness accounts, archival documents, photographs and videos, etc. Currently, these resources are held by a large number of memory institutions, often in analogue formats. For scholars, it can be challenging to find out which collections are relevant for their research and also what information can be found in these collections. In this article it is argued that Semantic Web technologies, together with new digital tooling to automatically open up collections and interlink their contents, have the potential to revolutionize future access and use. By making the contents of collections machine-readable and enriching them with links to reference data, a shift can be made from a "web of documents" to a "web of data." By publishing all contents as linked open data, domain experts in research infrastructures (RIs) and thematic aggregators (TAs) are enabled to add their own "thematic" layers to the data, thus empowering themselves and others to explore the data in new, more sophisticated ways. Since we are only at the start of this development, the author advocates a close cooperation between archives, libraries, and museums (ALMs) and domain experts

Contemporary Art and Historical Archives: Collaborations and Convergences in a Digital Multicultural Age

Literature illuminating the relationship between contemporary art and historical archives around the turn of the twenty-first century and how these interactions inform the evolution of archives in a digital multicultural age is the topic of this review. The literature reveals the extent to which art has been a means for members of marginalized groups to address their representation in historical archives, and also a means for archives to connect with a broader audience. Collaborations between artists and historical archives add new dimension to the debate about the nature of the archive as a creation in and of itself, and in turn the question of whether participatory culture may be a necessary component in achieving more complete representation of all segments of the community. Types of relationships explored in this review include: the questioning of and re-imagining of the archive by artists, particularly those from marginalized groups; the blending of art and digital archives; and how such collaborations have informed the mission and practical concerns of archives. As digitization leads to increasing convergence of previously distinct cultural heritage collections and enthusiasm for participatory platforms accelerates, interactions between individual artists, people from marginalized communities, and GLAM (galleries, libraries, archives and museums) will continue to evolve and expand. From this literature review emerge observations about prior collaborations from around the world as they inform future developments

Primary Sources in K–12 Education: Opportunities for Archives

Recent developments in the field of K–12 (kindergarten through twelfth grade) education have made archival resources essential tools for many teachers. Inquiry-based learning, document-based questions, and high stakes standardized testing have converged to make primary resources an important teaching tool in elementary and secondary education. Teaching and testing K–12 students require analysis of primary documents, so that archival records take their place alongside the test tube and the textbook in many American classrooms. These trends represent an opportunity for archives to expand their patron base, establish contacts in the community, contribute to the vitality of public education in their communities, and cultivate the next generation of archives’ users, donors, and supporters. This paper encourages archivists to consider K–12 students and their teachers when planning programs, digital products, and services

The Ohio State University Libraries Audiovisual Assessment Interim Report

The 26-month audiovisual (AV) assessment took place from June 2017 to August 2019 with a focus on rare or unique audiovisual items. Curators and archivists within each unit identified collections or collecting areas for significance or research value. Approximately 65% of AV materials in seven library units has not been assessed. Upon completion, 18,389 audiovisual items in 32 distinct formats were individually assessed

Data fluidity in DARIAH -- pushing the agenda forward

This paper provides both an update concerning the setting up of the European DARIAH infrastructure and a series of strong action lines related to the development of a data centred strategy for the humanities in the coming years. In particular we tackle various aspect of data management: data hosting, the setting up of a DARIAH seal of approval, the establishment of a charter between cultural heritage institutions and scholars and finally a specific view on certification mechanisms for data

Framing Collaboration: Archives, IRs, and General Collections

Collaborative collecting highlights the opportunity for liaison librarians and archivists in academic libraries to develop an integrated and holistic approach to the successful collection of library materials. Yet as academic libraries become the central location for general collections, institutional repositories, university archives, manuscript collections, and other special collections, the world of collecting in academic libraries becomes more siloed. The profession stands to benefit from a stronger realization of shared collecting practices. Liaison librarians have the potential to provide critical information to archivists in support of faculty collecting and research. Archivists have the opportunity to provide liaison librarians with context about university units and the organization’s broader history. Shared information can result in more robust collecting policies and practices across the library