Text searches allow us to sift through thousands of documents in an instant, to find helpful sources when conducting research. While many of these documents, such as published articles, already exist in a digital format, most primary sources must undergo a process of digitization. Some primary sources have different typesetting styles than modern computers, and others are handwritten primary sources. In these cases they must be manually digitized and typed out by the database creators. Once entered into the database, keywords can be used to find specific details from the collection of primary source material. Text searching easily allows one to track topics and even individuals through the source record. One thing that I feel is lost in digitization of source material is the significance of the physical, visual aspects of the primary source, such as the style of the script used in handwritten ones, or the specific formatting used in the typesetting of historical documents. Although small details, I feel that these are still important for giving contextual clues as to the origins of the information, as well as cultural indicators in terms of stylistic trends. However, in exchange for this loss, we receive both convenience and accessibility, which is equally vital.
In our class on Wednesday, we touched upon the use of open source websites and databases in instances of national tragedy, or civil unrest, such as in response to 9/11, or the Baltimore Uprising in response to the death of Freddy Gray while in police custody. These websites compile information that can be searched to help make sense of shocking and sudden events, in which people are separated from their loved ones, and need a means of checking updates to determine their whereabouts. These websites are examples of digital projects, of one nature or another—website or database—effecting social change. With the Baltimore Uprising 2015 Archive Project, people involved in and/or interested in the cause and legacy of the protests are able to keep alive the knowledge of the injustice dealt upon Gray. They are able to contribute to the preservation of the information circulating about his unlawful death, as well as the response to it, without being censored or silenced. Digital media gives a voice to those who otherwise might be drowned out. Another example of this, although loosely tied to this posting, would be the use of twitter and “live-tweeting” during the Ferguson protests in response to the death of Mike Brown in 2014, a year before the Baltimore Uprising. Protesters were able to give live updates about the situation in Ferguson, and took on the roles of journalists in their own right by recording footage and writing about the events as they transpired, much of which went ignored by popular news outlets. Digital media allowed them to spread news of their situation nationally, as well as world-wide, while it was still transpiring. I think that these examples demonstrate the power of global, online accessibility for the sake of social change. Digital projects, from formal organized websites like the Baltimore Uprising Archive, to informal collections such as the hashtags used to compile tweets from the Ferguson protests, have an incredible reach. While the act of digitizing old sources might take away context or flavor, the creation of new digital projects permits the creation of sources that otherwise would have gone silent. In either case, the need for accessibility is ultimately paramount.
“Preserve The Baltimore Uprising 2015 Archive Project.” Preserve The Baltimore Uprising 2015 Archive Project, The Maryland Historical Society, baltimoreuprising2015.org/about.
Desmond-Harris, Jenée. “Twitter Forced the World to Pay Attention to Ferguson. It Won’t Last.” Vox, Vox Media, 14 Jan. 2015, www.vox.com/2015/1/14/7539649/ferguson-protests-twitter.
