Readings from Gardner, Public History, Part II, pp. 43-230

Its Thursday, so I guess it is time for me to share my responses to the assigned readings! This week’s articles from Public History: Essays from the Field provides a brief summary of the opportunities and challenges public historians face in the field. Whether historians apply their craft as administrators, documentary editors, or museum educators, their primary goal is to disseminate complex historic ideas and make them accessible to the public. Nina Gilden Seavey’s chapter on film and media producers illustrates the many pratfalls public historians face. Increasingly, the only exposure Americans have to history is from superficial documentaries produced by the History Channel (Oh, hell. Who am I kidding? The History Channel only produces documentaries on ice road truckers). Seavey notes that, unlike traditional texts, filmmakers attempt to provide a definitive account of the past, rather than illuminate the broader debates concerning events. Most filmmakers unconsciously reinforce these perceptions by using authoritative talking heads to reinforce their interpretations (Seavey, 117-119, 121, 127). Museum educators face similar problems when they interact with the public. Museums educators, for example, must explain the “interrelationships between objects, spaces and the persons who once used them and placing them into a historical context” (Howell, 145). Yet educators must be willing to condense their tours and refrain from overwhelming visitors. Although the rigors of a masters or PHD program require students to be as detailed as possible, the museum setting requires some brevity; most patrons are on vacation and do not wish to attend a seminar on slavery. Museum Educators must be satisfied with introducing visitors to new concepts and ideas, providing the impetus for patrons to further study the topic (Howell, 151-152).

               As I examined these chapters, I began to reflect on how I will make archives accessible to the public when I enter the profession (God willing). Archivists have only recently discovered the importance of outreach and education in the last few decades as opposed to museum educators and curators. Although archivists such as Ken Osbourne and Sharon Ann Cook have made significant contributions to archival outreach, I still find myself grasping for a reliable method for archival outreach and education. However, as Mark Howell notes, the only reliable formula may be to become adept a gauging one’s audience for the most effective methods for outreach and education (Howell, 151).