RAIN 20090124

Records and Archives In the News is a compilation of news stories related to records and archives management.

A new kind of record-keeper
FCW.com - Falls Church,VA,USA
Timothy Sprehe Federal records management has been in a sorry state for
decades. But President Barack Obama has a unique opportunity to put federal...
<http://fcw.com/articles/2009/01/26/a-new-kind-of-record-keeper.aspx>

Protecting our images
Berkeleyan Online - Berkeley,CA,USA
Says archivist James Eason: "I think of where many of the archives were
before they came to us and what their life expectancy was in someone's
garage or ...
<http://www.berkeley.edu/news/berkeleyan/2009/01/22_pictorial.shtml>

Obama official bemoans White House technology
IT Examiner - Banglore,Karnataka,India
One of the biggest hurdles will be that the new White House staffers have
to be conscious of the fact that everything they email is considered public...
<http://www.itexaminer.com/obama-official-bemoans-white-house-technology.aspx>

Does the White House Have Wi-Fi?
Fast Company - USA
Not only that -- staffers were forbidden from accessing outside email
accounts or chatting online, too. MSNBC quotes one Obama spokesperson as...
<http://www.fastcompany.com/blog/chris-dannen/techwatch/does-white-house-have-wifi>

Obama Staffers: White House Is a Barbaric Technological Wasteland ...
Gizmodo - USA
... email and laptops are the major tools his staffers have been using for
the last couple years—and indeed, much of the reason they're in the White
House ...
<http://i.gizmodo.com/5137030/obama-staffers-white-house-is-a-barbaric-technological-wasteland-without-im-or-macs>

Obama Gets To Keep 'Enhanced' BlackBerry
Wall Street Journal - USA
... have eschewed email because of security concerns and US laws that
require such communications to be preserved as part of White House record
keeping. ...
<http://online.wsj.com/article/BT-CO-20090122-717790.html>

Court: Autopsy records are public documents
Pittsburgh Tribune-Review - Pittsburgh,PA,USA
By Bobby Kerlik In a 5-1 decision, the state's top court overturned a lower
court ruling and wrote that under the state's Coroner's Act autopsy reports...
<http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/news/breaking/s_608413.html>

Inside Obama's Classified Smartphone
PC Magazine - USA
And there are a lot of government functions, even in war, that aren't
classified. In Iraq, for instance, FIPS 140-2-certified Windows Mobile
devices are ...
<http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2339444,00.asp>

In Barack Obama's White House, his BlackBerry is VIP
Chicago Tribune - United States
... at George Washington University and author of "White House E-Mail: The
Top Secret Computer Messages the Reagan-Bush White House Tried to Destroy....
<http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/chi-090122-obama-keeps-blackberry,0,1714518.story>

White House Web Site: Window Into Obama's Soul?
NPR - USA
No real shock that Obama's New Media team reported in the early days that,
digitally speaking, the whole Bush White House had an antediluvian feel toit. ...
<http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=99794168>

County cites evidence of sheriff file shredding
Cumberland Times-News - Cumberland,MD,USA
He did so through our office shredder ... at no time were records altered,
deleted, or shredded in an attempt to avoid revealing this information to...
<http://www.times-news.com/local/local_story_022225930.html>

Paper Trail
New York Times - United States
Among the gems in the archive, Brent tells us, is a cache of pornographic
cartoons, idly sketched by Politburo members during their meetings. ...
<http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/25/books/review/Walker-t.html?em>

UK Orders ISPs To Archive Private E-mail Records
InformationWeek - Manhasset,NY,USA
By KC Jones In less than two months, British Internet Service Providers
will be required to maintain records on UK citizens' e-mail traffic. ...
<http://www.informationweek.com/news/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=212902214>

Scanning Project Has Digitized 25000 Library of Congress Books
Voice of America - USA
The scanning is being done by the Internet Archive. The San Francisco-based
nonprofit group aims to preserve cultural artifacts such as musical
recordings ...
<http://www.voanews.com/english/Science/2009-01-23-voa29.cfm>

Preserving and celebrating our history
Estes Park Trail Gazette - Estes Park,CO,USA
... and Becky Latanich, Archivist ESTES PARK, Colo. — In 2009 the Estes
Park Public Library will celebrate an important milestone; the "Year of
the Archive. ...
<http://www.eptrail.com/news/2009/jan/23/preserving-and-celebrating-our-history/>

State Librarian checks out from Boston: Margolis, credited for ...
TMCnet - USA
He also will review security of its valuable artifacts following an October
sentencing of State Archivist Daniel Lorello to 2 to 6 years in prison for...
<http://www.tmcnet.com/usubmit/-state-librarian-checks-out-from-boston-margolis-credited-/2009/01/24/3937212.htm>

How Obama Will Use Web Technology
Washington Post - United States
With the transition of WhiteHouse.gov to the new administration, for the
first time ever an official White House blog came online. You can sign up
for email ...
<http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/01/24/AR2009012400646.html>

The BlackBerry accord of 2009
Los Angeles Times - CA,USA
Former President George W. Bush gave up personal e-mail upon entering
office, fearing he would create a public record with every touch of the
"send" button. ...
<http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-obama-blackberry23-2009jan23,0,3585072.story>

Obama wins the BlackBerry war
Christian Science Monitor - Boston,MA,USA
Security was one issue, record keeping is another. It would seem that most
presidential emails would have to be kept for the official record. ...
<http://features.csmonitor.com/politics/2009/01/22/obama-wins-the-blackberry-war/>

The wired president: Obama creates an e-mail trail
The Associated Press
That's according to leading presidential historians who make their living
hunting through records at the National Archives and Records
Administration. ...
<http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5iApBQgNnUdGezg9ZAC-RBgZS86LwD95T1II00>

Memphis TV Station Uses Archives As Online Resource
Poynter.org - St. Petersburg,FL,USA
As newsrooms get smaller, one of my worries is what will become of newsroom
archives. Newspapers are doing away with librarians, and TV station
archives are ...
<http://www.poynter.org/content/content_view.asp?id=157211>

Alaska communities work to identify, preserve local history
Fairbanks Daily News-Miner - Fairbanks,AK,USA
For state and local historians, these upcoming acts of spring cleaning can
also be a bonanza for preserving Alaska's historical archives. ...
<http://newsminer.com/news/2009/jan/24/alaska-communities-work-identify-preserve-local-hi/>

State Librarian checks out from Boston
Albany Times Union - Albany,NY,USA
Margolis faces mounting challenges at the State Library when deep cuts are
being made to deal with the state budget deficit. Its funding stream also
is tied ...
<http://timesunion.com/AspStories/story.asp?storyID=763107>

Guantanamo Case Files in Disarray
Washington Post - United States
"Not all the documents are physically located in one place," Morrell said,
but most are available through a database. "The main point here is that
there are ...
<http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/01/24/AR2009012401702.html?hpid=topnews>