Bit Rosie: A Case Study in Transforming Web-Based Multimedia Research into Digital Archives

Abstract

This article is a case study in transforming web-based multimedia research initiatives into digital institutional archives to safeguard against the unstable nature of the Internet as a long-term historical medium. The study examines the Bit Rosie digital archives at the New York University Fales Library, which was created as a collaboration between a doctoral researcher in ethnomusicology and the head music librarian at the Avery Fisher Center for Music and Media. The article analyzes how the Bit Rosie archives implements elements of both feminist and activist archival practice in a born-digital context to integrate overlooked women music producers into the archives of the recorded music industry. The case study illustrates how collaboration between cultural creators, researchers, and archivists can give legitimacy and longevity to projects and voices of cultural resistance in the internet era. To conclude, the article suggests that more researchers and university libraries can use this case study as a model in setting up institutional archival homes for the increasing number of multimedia initiatives and projects blossoming throughout the humanities and social sciences.