Archivists who work with audiovisual materials have suggested that we currently face a “magnetic media crisis”—and that by 2030, all analog video and audio formats will be unplayable, resulting in the loss of a great deal of valuable historical documentation (or “data”). In this #EndangeredData Week workshop, members of the XFR Collective will offer a general introduction to the challenges and opportunities of this “magnetic media crisis.” We’ll discuss a range of existing strategies for preserving and stewarding analog media collections; consider the ways in which the magnetic media crisis disproportionately affects media documenting marginalized communities; debunk some notions around “best” practices in audio/visual archives and preservation; and talk about the ways in which the XFR Collective and other DIY/grassroots projects work to address these issues.
Contact: Jenna Freedman