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Re: New Yorker



7/20/00

        I urge all interested subscribers to read Mr. Baker's article carefully.
Some of the remarks made in messages today have been rather wide of the
mark, at least as I read it. He should not be the subject of anger, at
least unless his arguments have been read carefully, nor should he be
dismissed simply because he is not part of the professional "academy".

        He admittedly argues a special case: the near-annihilation of major
newspapers in major cities, as well as very rare runs of very special kinds
of newspapers. He is *not* arguing for the preservation of all newspapers
universallly, though no doubt the implication is there that their
destruction after filming should be very cautiously weighed. He argues that
one of the offshoots of the trend he is criticizing is that much of our
past has been "privatized" by firms which now control rare microfilm
negatives of many papers.

        He also argues that deterioration has been exaggerated and microfilming
oversold. He admits that the latter has some positives. He is also detailed
about the negatives of filming and the problems with scanning. A most
interesting point is that the proponents of microfilming forty to sixty
years ago operated under some questionable assumptions. Indeed, he argues,
though he does not use the word, that a kind of "groupthink" has
characterized the acceptance of the paradigm of film/destroy.

        Mr. Baker seems naive on such questions as why librarians face what he
calls a perpetual space crisis. Obviously, one can also argue that bound
newspapers, even if in good shape relatively when he found them (as he has
assiduously searched out and bought what he could), would easily
deteriorate if used on a daily basis.

        A smattering of points on a quick read--

Ed Southern

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Edwin Southern, Ph.D  (esouthern@ncsl.dcr.state.nc.us)
Head, State Records Unit
Department of Cultural Resources
Division of Archives and History
Archives and Records Section
Records Services Branch
4615 Mail Service Center
Raleigh, NC 27699-4615

Phone 919/733-3540
Fax 919/715-3627

Opinions expressed in this message may
not represent the policy of my agency.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

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