5 reasons archives are an untapped goldmine for wikipedians and wikimedians
DESCRIPTION
See video of the original presentation at http://youtu.be/PptQZmf4FKs Archival repositories are places which hold the original records created by people and organizations--paper, audiovisual, and electronic--preserving and providing access the primary sources that form the backbone of historical research. They are also a treasure trove of unique, reliable sources and free media for Wikipedia editors. Moreover, professional archivists often share the same driving passion that motivates so many volunteer editors: the desire to organize valuable information and make it accessible to all. This presentation will introduce you to the basics of archival records and research (often a somewhat mysterious process to the uninitiated) and lay out the top 5 reasons why partnerships with archival repositories are of mutual benefit to Wikimedians and archivists alike.TRANSCRIPT
Top 5 Reasons Archives are an
Untapped Goldmine for Wikipedians &
Wikimedians
Wikimania 2012 conferenceWashington, DC
Sara Snyder
1. About the Archives of American Art
2. GLAM/SI &Wikipedian in Residence
3. Top 5 Reasons why archives make fabulous GLAM partners
Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution
• www.aaa.si.edu (screenshot)
Experimental editing 2007-10
The Archives’ Goals
•To run a pilot/experimental project and see what happens
•To get training and mentoring for our staff in Wiki norms and culture
Wikipedian in Residence Activities
• One on one mentoring and training of staff as well as other interns
• Analysis of names our collections and corresponding articles in need of creation or improvement
• Smithsonian Staff brown bag info sessions
• Backstage Pass & Edit-a-thon
Outcomes
•36 new English articles were created utilizing Archives resources• 14 English articles translated into
Spanish• 2 articles translated into French• 2 articles translated into Catalan
•12 English articles were expanded
•2 articles was expanded in Spanish
•5 articles were "Do You Knows...?”
Outcomes (con’t)
• 1 article was awarded Good Article status• 256 high resolution PD photographs were
donated by the Archives to Wikimedia Commons
• 4 documents were transcribed for WikiSource
• 39 E-Volunteers participated in the project• 3 staff members and 1 intern participated
as Wikipedians in the project
Benefits to the Archives
• Press coverage
• New relationships with other GLAMs
• List of articles we continue to work from
• Confidence in our expertise and the fact that we are indeed welcome!
Referrals from Wikimedia sites
2009 - 4.72% of site visits2010 - 5.95% of site visits2011- 6.57% of site visits
Since January of 2010, Wikimedia sites have driven 2x the pageviews to the Archives’ website when compared to all other social media sites combined.
Archives: Who, Where, What
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Archive
Top 5 Reasons Archives are an
Untapped Goldmine for Wikipedians &
Wikimedians
REASON #5
Archives contain unique and amazing historical sources, increasing amounts of which have been digitized
REASON #4
Lots of material found in archives is out of copyright or public domain
REASON #3
Doing archival research may make you feel like you are starring in an episode of “History Detectives”
REASON #2
Archival collection descriptions are published, secondary sources that are already written to be:
•authoritative •well-researched•have a neutral point of view
REASON #1
Archivists!!!"I thought the curators had all the answers and knew the secrets. Then I
hung out with the archivists at the Archives
of American Art.“-Sarah Stierch, “Why Wikipedia Needs
Archivists”
