Skip to: Content
Skip to: Site Navigation
Skip to: Search

December 4, 2008 10:11:18 AM CST


Library of Congress

Library of Congress news stories

9 Stories

 Flickr Users Help ID
 Archival Photos

Historical archives find new life online

(Newser) - Flickr users are helping the Library of Congress identify photos in its historical archives, reports USA Today . So far, users have supplied information on 500 photos featured in Flickr's "The Commons" project, which drew 8.2 million views in just 6 months. Both partners are "stunned by the level of knowledge and also the generosity" of contributors, says one Flickr rep. More »

More about:  Internet social networking file sharing photography Flickr Library of Congress

ANALYSIS

Digital Rules Stymie Library
of Congress

Copyright restrictions make even routine
archiving difficult

(Newser) - Anti-copyright laws are irritating not only casual music listeners or movie watchers who want to back up their digital media—even the Library of Congress is butting heads with the rules that forbid the duplication of copyrighted works, Ars Technica finds. And though the library has pushed for changes in the law, the calls have met deaf ears on Capitol Hill. More »

More about:  copyright DRM Library of Congress digital media Digital Millenium Copyright Act

 Thriller Joins Top
 US History Trove 

Jackson hit album added to prestigious aural archives

(Newser) - Michael Jackson's Thriller has been added to the prestigious National Recording Registry's archive of the most important recordings in American history, Variety reports. The monster 1982 hit joins 24 other "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant" new additions to the collection, including a 1925 recording of the first-ever broadcast to cross the Atlantic. More »

More about:  speech Michael Jackson broadcasting record Library of Congress archive Thriller

Now on eBay:
6 Million Songs for Just $50M

World's greatest music collection is looking for a home, again

(Newser) - Record collector supreme Paul Mawhinney has put his collection of over 6 million songs on eBay, but with its value estimated at $50 million and a $3 million starting bid, bidders could be rarer than some of the jewels in the collection, the Idolator writes. "It's the history of music," Mawhinney says of the colossal music archive he spent over 40 years building. "It's my life's work." More »

More about:  music eBay auction museums Library of Congress records

Now Playing: 25 Timeless Flicks

Back to the Future, Bullitt, Days of Heaven ascend to American film-buff heaven

(Newser) - The Librarian of Congress showed off his eclectic film taste this week, selecting 25 "culturally, historically or aesthetically" notable movies that will be preserved forever in the National Film Registry. The widely varied picks, which bring the total list to 475, include: Back to the Future (1985) Days of Heaven (1978) Dances with Wolves (1990) Oklahoma! (1955) Bullitt (1968) More »

More about:  list movie film Library of Congress

Sam Cooke Sang, and a Change Came

Library of Congress enshrines late singer's protest anthem

(Newser) - Sam Cooke had his fair share of hits, but he didn't live to see the success of his masterpiece, the protest song “A Change is Gonna Come.” Now that it’s been enshrined at the Library of Congress, NPR takes a look at the civil rights anthem and its creator, whom Aretha Franklin calls “one of the greatest singers of all time.” More »

More about:  music civil rights movement Bob Dylan Library of Congress Aretha Franklin Sam Cooke

At 500, 1st 'America' Map Baffles

German monk closely mapped South America, unknown Pacific

(Newser) - The Library of Congress this week unveils the first map to use the name "America"—and the 500-year-old mysteries that go with it. The 1507 map by a German monk includes a surprisingly precise rendering of South America, Reuters reports, and seemingly predicts the contours of the continent's Pacific coast 6 years before European explorers ever saw it. More »

More about:  America South America monks Library of Congress maps North America

Net to House World's Top Library

UN unveils plan for 'intellectual cathedral'

(Newser) - If the World Digital Library works out as planned, it’ll make Alexandria look like a Buck-a-Book. The UN project hopes to collect primary sources from around the world in every medium, digitize them, and offer them online, free, in seven languages. “What they are doing is building an intellectual cathedral, and it may never get finished,” one tech forecaster said. More »

More about:  Internet Google libraries Library of Congress

Surrealist Simic Named Poet Laureate

15th national bard known for his dark humor and irony

(Newser) - Charles Simic, a surrealist poet whose style gleams with dark imagery and ironic humor, will be named the United States' 15th poet laureate today. The 69-year-old, who replaces fellow New Hampshirite Donald Hall, has published more than 20 volumes of poetry as well as essay collections, translations and a memoir. More »

More about:  literature America humor poetry Library of Congress Yugoslavia Pulitzer Prize creative writing irony poet laureate

9 Stories

Today's Most Popular

Loading...

Premium Articles from HighBeam

Find more articles like this

What is Newser?

2008 Codie Finalist

Face it: there's too much news. At Newser a team of editors and writers culls the most important stories from hundreds of U.S. and international sources and reduces them to a headline, picture, and two paragraphs. It's the Newser guarantee: we can take any report or column or video and pack what you need to know into 120 words or less. Newser's short-form aggregation, visual format, and unique information tools help you get more of the kind of news you want, in a quicker and more entertaining way. And we do it 24/7—you can come back morning, noon, night (and in between) for something new that matters. Read less, know more.

Learn more »