Ethical Problems in Archival Research: Beyond Accessibility

Digital humanities

Pamela Innes, linguistic anthropologist at the University of Wyoming, presents a solution for protecting the privacy and cultural heritage of indigenous people while balancing the need for public access to archival materials. She proposes that archivists and anthropologists provide enriched metadata for nativist and linguistic materials. This metadata would include rich ethnographic information, alerting the reader to the item’s intended audience, restrictions, and possible harm that might afflict the donors if disseminated or received inappropriately. Citing her own experience with the Mvskoke language of the Muskogee and Seminole tribes, Innes recounts her decision to forego public access to Mvskoke recordings intended for gender-specific audiences because the historical context and “language ideology” were not included in the archival metadata. In order to continue long-term preservation of culturally sensitive materials, a relationship of trust and responsibility must be firmly established to assure the donating tribes. Innes’ decision to prevent public access to the poorly documented Mvskoke recordings reveals her sensitivity to performative as well as representational aspects of archiving cultural artifacts. Ethnographically enriched metadata promotes ethics and trust between donor and archivist while facilitating scholarly research and long-term preservation.

Innes, Pamela

Language and Communication

2010

Polk, Victoria

Journal Article

Innes, Pamela. "Ethical problems in archival research: Beyond accessibility." Language & Communication, v30 n3. (2010):198-203.