Preserving the Sound of America

jonerik writes "The Associated Press (by way of MSNBC) has this article on the Library of Congress' National Recording Registry, which 'seeks to ensure even greater protection for some of the most notable songs, speeches and other utterances.' To that end, the library's extensive collection of recordings and photos will soon be moved to a massive 41-acre complex built into the side of a mountain in Culpeper, Virginia. When construction on the site is completed - in about three years - anything stored in Culpeper should be available via computer at the library's Madison Building on Capitol Hill. The Library of Congress has been collecting recordings for almost 100 years, the first being a recording of a speech by German Emperor Wilhelm II. Since then the library has collected recorded speeches by every American President since Theodore Roosevelt, oral histories, music, radio broadcasts, and other examples of recorded sound." This sounds like a collection which will become more valuable as more people have access to the actual content of the collections.

Comments

The value of crap?

[ObviousGuy]

So the vast majority of all music produced in the United States is crap. This isn't just about the Britneys and N'Syncs, it's about all music produced from the terrible free form Jazz pretenders in Louisiana to the horrendous grunge artists of the Pacific Northwest. There is such a dearth of good music, it makes a mind boggle.

So now the LOC is planning on preserving this crap for posterity. It's worth about the same as preserving the crap from my posterior.