1. Take a look at the Course Packet! It’s on electronic reserve at the library! http://bsu.edu/library/

2. BY RACHEL COLEMAN Mass Media and the historian

3. THE GOOD, THE BAD, AND THE UGLY Technology in Museums

4. Guided tours (no tour guide needed!) Video clips at various places in museums Using audio clips in museums Computerized databases in museums for browsing Exhibits that move Hands-on electronic exhibits (some using computers) InterFilms Computerized surveys

5. Technology in Museums: Pros and Cons Group Exercise Active involvement Remember better More visual information Entertaining Access to artifacts that might not be on display Personalizes things (Holocaust Museum) Might raise money Might encourage people to do more research Can recreate deteriorated things/places Upkeep  Could break down  Have to reprogram as technology and information change Can’t ask questions Degrades the experience Unreliable Can cause unemployment – no more need for guides, etc.

6. A Few Things to Remember Watch for the “bleeding” of sound The technology should not completely take over the objects. But - not using technology at all can limit the audience the museum appeals to. Technology needs upkeep, and can be expensive!

7. AND THE HISTORIAN The Internet

8. The Internet is a Democratizing force. What does this mean?

9. Question: Will museum websites replace actual museum buildings? What will their effect be?

10. Some Examples http://newdeal.feri.org/default.cfm http://remember.org/auschwitz/ http://www.thetruthseeker.co.uk/category.asp?ID=1 5 http://www.thetruthseeker.co.uk/category.asp?ID=1 5

11. Conclusion The Internet provides wonderful opportunities for the museum and for the historian, but must be used carefully and with thought. The Internet is a Democratizing Force – and this can be both good and bad.

12. SOME ANALYSIS Historical Documentaries

13. Benefits of Historical Documentaries: Historical documentaries, as films, appeal to visual learners and reach an audience of all ages. People who would balk at picking up a history book often watch historical documentaries on TV. Historical documentaries are good for using in schools. People are often more likely to remember something they’ve watched in a historical documentary than something they simply learned in school or read a long time ago.

14. Challenges in making Historical Documentaries: Finding visual images Choosing the correct historians as commentators Telling a complicated story in a limited amount of time Others?

15. Pitfalls in making Historical Documentaries: Filmmakers like to tell simple, unambiguous stories. Unfortunately, history is neither. Filmmakers tend to be okay with using images of one thing to illustrate another - this may seem deceptive. Filmmakers choose historians as commentators; the people watching the end product often assume that these historians are the final word, ignoring debate. Filmmakers need to tell interesting stories – if it’s not going to have an audience, it won’t be made. Filmmakers need to entertain. Historical Documentaries cannot possibly convey the amount of information given in a history article or book.

16. Exercise: http://www.history.com/video.do?name=americanh istory http://www.history.com/video.do?name=americanh istory Evaluate EVERY ASPECT of this clip, thinking especially about how and why the filmmakers chose each aspect of the clip – the images, the music, the narration, the historian, the recreations, etc.

17. Analysis?

18. The End