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Reply-To: <jwvanbogart@nml.org>From: "John Van Bogart" <jwvanbogart@nml.org>To: "'Katherine Cochrane'" <katherine@cd-info.com>Cc: "'DuBois, Peg'" <pedubois@nml.org>, "'Dan Sprick'" <dksprick@nml.org>Subject: Update on "Short Life Expectancy" ArticlesDate: Tue, 28 Apr 1998 10:03:10 -0500X-Priority: 3 (Normal)Importance: NormalHi Katherine,Thank you for sharing the copy of you Letter to the Editor of Business Week.I appreciate the fact that you took the time to write this letter. I amgetting tired of addressing media mis-information and was not planning torespond to the Business Week article. I was successful in getting a Letterto the Editor of US News & World Report published, but it didn't appearuntil a month after I had submitted it. And, who knows how many people sawit? (see reference below).http://www.usnews.com/usnews/issue/980413/13lett.htm [n.b. This page is no longer available.]I also want to let you know that the NML web site has changed. TheLE/Disposition charts used as the source of this mis-information andarticles containing these charts have been removed from our site. Regardingthe LE of magnetic tape and optical disc, we now have a very simplestatement, which you can see at the reference below.http://www.nml.org/MediaStability/QuestionsAndAnswers/index.html#digital_le[n.b. This page is no longer available.]It is unfortunate that these resources had to be removed from our site. Itis a shock to me, but I am realizing that most Americans (includingreporters) do not know how to correctly interpret a technical chart. This iswhy we have taken the "simple" approach to the question of media longevity.We are not sure whether we will be sharing technical reports with thegeneral public via the Internet in the future.I am also learning that you cannot trust or believe the press. It is obviousthat they are not interested in the truth as much as they are sensationalstories that get attention. They do not keep the information that theypresent in context. They seem to stress the worst aspects of digital storageand ignore all of the benefits.Recently, NML has discovered what appears to be the source of this rash ofmis-information. It is part of a "publicity campaign" by the Council onLibrary and Information Resources (www.clir.org) to promote a documentaryentitled "Into the Future." Refer to the "Discussion Guide" that you used to be ablefind on this page -- http://www.clir.org/film/intro.html. [n.b. This page has apparently now been moved or removed.]I will also FAX you a copy of a Letter to the Editor of the Washington Postby Deanna Marcum, the President of CLIR, which will give you an idea of theCouncil's agenda. They seem determined to prevent paper and film archivesfrom going "digital" because digital media does not have the same longevityas paper. They apparently see this as a problem. What they fail to mentionis that with proper storage and handling and a transcription plan,relatively short (20-30 year) media and technology lifetimes do not pose athreat to the preservation of information, as their "Into the Future" videoimplies.NML has corresponded with CLIR in an effort to get them to correct theinformation that they are publishing and attributing to NML, but they do notseem interested in the truth either. I will FAX you copies of the letters ofcorrespondence between NML and CLIR. They still have not responded to thelast letter that we sent.Considering that CLIR is apparently behind much of the mis-information appearingin the press (you will find that the wording in magazine and newspaper articlesis very similar to that in CLIR letters and publications), I suggest that theybe the recipient of several letters from digital media manufacturers andorganizations.As I learn more, I will let you know. It is good to know that I have an allyin this "media" mess. Please share this information freely with others.Best Regards,John Van BogartNational Media LaboratoryE-mail:  jwvanbogart@nml.orgPhone:   (612) 733-1918FAX:     (612) 575-1644