[Michlib-l] Oral Histories

[Gary R. Cocozzoli]

One of our staff is involved with the Michigan Oral History Association,
and she sent this question, and got two replies which could be helpful:

*1. Cam, professor at U of Mich.*

Consent needs to be obtained from the individuals, if possible.  If
interviewees have passed, then consent should be sought from families and
an offer should be made to return the tapes to them.

There is an opportunity to connect here.  Interviewees and their families
may be quite happy to see the tapes curated and made available (and have
input into that).  But, the stories are theirs to publish or not.

That’s my assessment;  it is hard to lose material or to risk losing
material.  But, it’s not your material to lose in this case.  It’s your
material to return - either as a cool exhibit/collection or as a direct
return back to the interviewees/families.

I’m guessing university counsel will give you similar feedback.  Another
issue may be exactly how old the recordings are.  That might resolve the
copyright question from a legal standpoint (eventually), but the ethical
issue would remain.

best,
Cam

*2. Russ, retired professor from N. Mich. U.*

Answer to your question: try to find the family and get them to sign the
form; also offer them a vocal and transcript of the interview as
grandchildren usually like to hear the voice of their grandparents and
their ideas on tape. Otherwise, indicate some way in paper through a memo
to put on file that you tried to contact the family and add the necessary
detail for legal purposes. If all fails I would remove the name of the
individual and list it as “anonymous.” This is a dilemma since you are
holding fine memories that should not get lost. The other position that
some institutions take is that the individual did the interview and by this
act decided that his/her memories were valuable and gave the tape to the
library. Your legal counsel could think this out. I seriously doubt that a
judge in court is going to take a different position. But first try to find
the family and get a signature.

Best,
Russell
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Gary Cocozzoli
_____________________
Gary R. Cocozzoli
Director of the Library
Lawrence Technological University
248-204-3000
   gcocozzol at ltu.edu
   (or) grc at ltu.edu

Visit the Library at http://library.ltu.edu


On Mon, Apr 26, 2021 at 11:27 AM Barbara Gordon via Michlib-l <
michlib-l at mcls.org> wrote:

> Hello,
>
> I am looking for some expertise related to the use of oral history tapes
> and transcriptions in our library. A number of oral histories were recorded
> in the 1970s by the library. The cassettes contain interviews with local
> African American community members who had knowledge of and/or family
> history tied to our county's active Underground Railroad. Formal consent
> was not obtained during the making of these tapes. In the time since the
> tapes were made, a published index of participant names was made available
> to researchers. While I am not certain, I do believe researchers have been
> given access to these tapes as well. There is a renewed interest in this
> collection and the library has received requests for access to the tapes.
> It is my understanding that without signed consent forms, the library does
> not have copyright to these historical records. I would appreciate the
> opportunity to better understand what, if any, options we may have for
> making these invaluable resources available.
>
> Thank you!
>
> --
> Barbara Gordon, MLS
> Director
>
>
> 319 M-62
> Cassopolis, MI 49031
> 269-357-7822 ext. 101
> _______________________________________________
> Michlib-l mailing list
> Michlib-l at mcls.org
> https://mail3.mcls.org/mailman/listinfo/michlib-l
>
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