First NCPH conference, first THAT camp, so not sure what’s expected of ideas but here goes. I do social media for a living, and oral history in my spare time. I’m interested in talking about, playing with and experimenting with using social media (Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, others?) to both collect and even more exciting, disseminate oral history interviews and artifacts using social media networks.
Let’s discuss how we can (or can we?) use social media to crowdsource subjects, collect stories (in a very public space) and disseminate them. What are the “informed consent” ramifications of collecting/disseminating in this space? What can-o-worms am I proposing we talk about here?
If the group decides to make time during this discussion, I’d love to see what others are doing (bring your laptops) or maybe we can create a social media space to experiment with.
I’ve got some ideas, would love to see what you’re doing/thinking/trying.
Sounds interesting, Josh. I’m wondering if you’ve seen the Bracero Archive (braceroarchive.org/) and its “Tell Your Story” contribution feature on the Omeka platform. Is this similar to what you’re looking to do — or not?
Josh,
This sounds like a good conversation, and you are certainly correct about the possible dangers when it comes to permissions/consent. But this should not be something that derails us, especially as most oral histories languish in archives.
For exampe, I just discovered 80 oral histories of African American schoolteachers in Appalachia-each of whom taught in rural, all-black classrooms from the 1920s-60s. Most contributors are no longer with us, so how do we go about getting these digitized and available beyond the archive the right way?
@Jack, haven’t seen this archive. I’ll have to take a look. Thank you for the link.
Hi Josh,
I’d be very interested in discussing this at our camp! I am a history student at UWM, and I am planning on conducting a series of oral history interviews for my master’s thesis. I’d really like to learn more about the various ways in which I can make these stories available to as wide an audience as possible. Looking forward to speaking with you next week!
Luke
Josh,
I think this sounds like an excellent topic for discussion. I am a Research Assistant at the Southern Oral History Program at UNC-Chapel Hill, and I (along with two of my colleagues) would be happy to share our experiences with building a digital oral history archive. I’d also be interested in hearing more about your ideas re: crowdsourcing subjects and stories.
Liz
Hi Josh,
I just stumbled upon your very interesting idea. My museum is considering starting their own oral history project and I am very interested in hearing more about what was uncovered in your discussion. Is there anywhere that I can receive more information about it?
Thanks!
Allison
Hi Josh,
I stumbled upon and idea and I have a lot of interest in it. The museum I work for has conducted several oral history projects successfully, but this is before the advent of social media and I am wondering how to integrate Facebook and other social media platforms to collect other potential oral histories. I would love to be a part of this conversation.
Best regards,
Chad