Archives and Museums

Across the world, a vast number of museums and archives hold material relevant to journalism. There are two distinct categories of this material: news media content and the means of producing that content. The first includes newspapers, news-reels, radio recordings, television news footage, photographs, and, most recently, websites. And the second includes objects representing the technology involved in producing and delivering journalism, such as printing presses, cameras, radio and television sets, and computers.

The importance of collecting, preserving and interpreting both categories for the benefit of present and future generations cannot be overstated. It may be hyperbole to describe journalism as “the first draft of history.” Nevertheless, much of what journalists produce—whether print, film, or electronic—does constitute an important record of events, trends, and opinions and is therefore an invaluable resource for students of many disciplines. Moreover, everyone recognizes the pervasive influence—whether it be positive or negative—which the news media exercises over public opinion. Therefore, an informed understanding of how news is put together is itself a worthwhile subject for study.

Attempting to categorize and label the museums and archives engaged in this work across the world is a tricky exercise. In almost every area of museo-logical and archival activity, there is rarely an overarching logic explaining why certain collections are held in given institutions. Historical accident, government initiatives, philanthropic whims and fancies, and any number of other factors have produced the museums and collections we have today. Nevertheless, a few broad conclusions can be drawn about both museums and archives relevant to journalism and about how the Internet and the World Wide Web have brought a new dimension to the subject.