Articles

The Born-Digital Deluge: Documenting Twenty-First Century Events

Authors: Caroline Daniels (University of Louisville) , Heather Fox (University of Louisville) , Rachel Howard (University of Louisville)

Abstract

With digital recording devices readily available to most people, events are documented and shared on-line in real time by the “person on the street.” The ease of creation and dissemination belies what archivists know will be the long-term challenges of organizing and preserving collections of born-digital information. While other processes require little modification, the inherent fragility of digital content and the ease of depositing files call for a substantial modification of established procedures. In this article, three University of Louisville archivists discuss their approach to the acquisition, copyright transfer, file naming, selection, description, and preservation of born-digital content donated by the local community to document Louisville’s August 2009 flood.

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How to Cite: Daniels, C. , Fox, H. & Howard, R. (2011) “The Born-Digital Deluge: Documenting Twenty-First Century Events”, Archival Issues. 33(2). doi: https://doi.org/10.31274/archivalissues.10978