Six-part Series from the Internet Archive on Vanishing Culture
canopic jug writes:
The Internet Archive and the Authors Alliance are producing a six-part series from the Future Knowledge podcast. The series, Vanishing Culture explores what happens when our shared cultural heritage disappears, and what we can do to preserve it. The first episode was published July 1st, 2026 starts out discussing the growing threat of cultural loss in the digital age:
From disappearing websites and deleted social media archives to lost films, books, music, and video games, Luca explores why culture vanishes and why it matters. He explains how copyright law, corporate control of digital platforms, and the shift from ownership to licensing are making it harder for libraries, archives, and communities to preserve cultural memory. Along the way, he shares stories that illustrate both the fragility of our digital heritage and the importance of preserving it: from a favorite YouTube recipe rescued by the Wayback Machine to the role cultural artifacts play in memory and identity. The conversation wraps on a positive note, with a look toward solutions and what creators, libraries, and everyday citizens can do to help ensure culture remains accessible for generations to come.
There is also a open access ebook with the same title, Vanishing Culture from this year by Luca Messarra, Chris Freeland, and Juliya Ziskina. It's available from the Internet Archive as EPub or PDF. See also another open access book, Walled Culture: A Journey Behind the Copyright Bricks, from 2022 by Glyn Moody.
In addition to all the other problems, digital goes away by default once active support stops. Contrast that with paper, microfilm, and microfiche which have to have someone expend time and effort (aka money) to be disposed of or, better, you can keep the copy you have regardless of other factors. Physical media are also decentralized, where as with digital information, there is often only a single copy in the world. Yes, the physical media disappear and rot if neglected, but it is a far cry from the out-like-a-light loss that digital information is afflicted by - unless proactive efforts are taken, such as the heroic efforts by the Internet Archive and other archiving services.
Previously:
(2024) Internet Archive Responds to Appellate Opinion in Hachette v. Internet Archive
(2024) It's the End of the Web as We Know It
(2022) Digitization Wars, Redux
(2020) On the Disappearance of Open Access Journals Over Time
(2014) The Importance of Information Preservation
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