MYTH

There was once a myth about the permanence of magnetic media that has been proven to be just that: myth. Individuals and organizations that have produced work as recently as the 1990s are dealing with the need to preserve that work for the future. There is an even greater need to preserve works from earlier decades, as much of it was recorded on formats that are now extinct. Functional equipment to reproduce these tapes is difficult to locate and maintain. No true archival format exists. Migration to current magnetic formats is the best we can offer at present. New formats come and go, and media continues to degrade.

Certain works have been given the stamp of cultural importance and receive a sizable portion of limited resources to preserve them. As history has shown, what is culturally important now may not be considered so in the future. Decades or centuries must pass before true significance is known, and even that is subject to change. In the current environment, the majority of work will disappear before time and history have been given their due.

Beyond work that may be of questionable cultural importance: What about media generated in our everyday lives? There are countless hours of audio and videotape in existence, documenting everything from the personal to the mundane. How important is it to preserve a comprehensive history of our lives and times for future generations?

That we lack a comprehensive response to these problems is probably not new information for most of you. Many organizations are presently in the process of cataloging and assessing their collections. One important question remains: How do you democratize what is a costly process, making it affordable for individuals and institutions with limited resources? This has been a focus of interest at the Standby Program. A New York City-based media access program since 1983, Standby has been instrumental in the creation of a wide array of video work. We see preservation as an important progression and extension of our access services.

The Bay Area Video Coalition (BAVC) established an excellent preservation program that serves as a model to the field. However, one facility can only handle so much work. There is a clear need throughout the country for additional non-commercial centers that can provide low-cost access to media preservation services.

The Standby Program has taken up that challenge. In coordination with our commercial partners, we have created a magnetic media preservation and restoration program that uses responsible tape handling methods, covers a wide range of formats and is run by technicians sensitive to the unique needs of individuals, artists, and the cultural community. It has been a challenging and difficult endeavor, but one we feel is critical to pursue in order to prevent our audio and video history from becoming true mythology.

MARIA VENUTO is a filmmaker and executive director of the Standby Program. She resides in the New York City area.