This week I’ve started looking at how Indigenous stories have been recorded, digitized, and indexed. I came across the CBC Legends Project and was excited to listen to some recordings.
The CBC Radio’s Legends Project (2013) “compiles traditional oral stories, legends and histories of Canada’s Inuit and First Nations, gathered in communities across the country.”
However, I was initially so disappointed with the site. The first site I was directed to, CBC Aboriginal, was somewhat defunct. The site wasn’t displaying properly, it had not been maintained, and the recordings requiring installing Flash.
I reran my search and found the records on CBC Radio with a modern, pleasant display and the audio played well. It was clear and high quality.
The CBC changed their sub-site label from Aboriginal to Indigenous in 2016 and it looks like the first link was the previous, cached, iteration. It reflects poorly on repositories and archives when the site is poorly maintained, and the items are inaccessible. It does a disservice to the collections and the users. With the decision to record and make stories available, an organization needs to commit resources to maintain access and minimize digital obsolescence. CBC did follow through but how many people will go back and try the search again? How many would assume the CBC did not invest in a long-term commitment?
Canadian Broadcasting Corporation Radio. (2013, July 26). Legends of the Ahtahkakoop. https://www.cbc.ca/radio/ideas/legends-of-the-ahtahkakoop-1.2913531