Abstract
Archivists who work directly with unique collections, as well as librarians and other professionals who coordinate digitization, generally agree that access should be prioritized. However, each group has its own goals, standards, and timelines that may conflict with those of their colleagues. The push to maximize access to collections may, in some cases, go so far as to influence collecting policies. Is the lure of rapid digitization affecting best practices of arrangement and description? If online access to the collections is the ultimate goal, and if each stakeholder has a different perspective on how best to accomplish this, who decides how to proceed? These questions led the archivists and digitization librarian at a midsize state university library to ask, “Who is driving the bus with respect to digitizing archival collections?” This question will be explored through the experiences of three digitization initiatives at the library, each of which involved a different aspect of collaboration between archivists and a digitization librarian.
Recommended Citation
McCarty Smith, Kathelene; Gwynn, David; Koelsch, Beth Ann; and Motszko, Jennifer
(2019)
"“Who’s Driving the Bus?” or How Digitization Is Influencing Archival Collections,"
Journal of Contemporary Archival Studies: Vol. 6, Article 28.
Available at:
https://elischolar.library.yale.edu/jcas/vol6/iss1/28