If you’ve perused a historical newspaper in Newspapers.com lately, you may have noticed that the images are digitized from microfilm copies. Living to the ripe old age of 200 plus years, microfilm reels are still the gold standard as a final resting place for our local journalism. But the process of getting newspapers onto microfilm is being jostled about by the winds of digital change.
Many titles have evolved into digital-only productions, while others are split between both print and digital subscriptions for consumers. Readers may find this very convenient, but archivists are currently stuck between two worlds while trying to accomplish the same goal. The systems of microfilming print newspapers and digital newspapers are often at odds. Ultimately, every print page must be scanned or photographed before it can be imprinted on microfilm. For 70 years, microfilm preparation involved a specialized, lighted camera tower (usually located in the film lab) and a bed for laying out papers and “shooting” them. Newspaper archivists should rejoice that newer, born-digital newspapers do not require this extra step to make them film-ready.
When switching from print-to-film preparation to a digital-to-film system, the archivist can also avoid the chore of ironing-flat and collating the prints before they can be photographed. During a transition period in which new systems are still in the fishbowl with the old ones, nothing is as simple as it seems. Simplicity is the outcome of decades of workflow maintenance and “happy accidents” that reconfigure efficiency to match a new process. This is especially true of archival science. There are roadblocks to jumping in with both feet during this time of print-to-digital preservation. These hurdles must be cleared in a fashion unique to every newspaper title.
Not every paper is released digitally and there is no universal policy for collecting digital pages so that they will collate correctly (by date and page number) when acquired from the publisher. Newspaper preservationists are learning these steps as they go, brainstorming methods alongside the staff of the partnering microfilm lab. Many such labs (including ours for the State of Indiana) no longer provide print newspaper photography. They only create microfilm from digital newspaper images, meaning that print newspapers must already be digitized (photographed or scanned) before being taken to the lab on a drive. Most print newspaper rooms (including ours at ISL) still have several 2018-2024 tangible newspapers waiting to be digitized before the system can “start over” with filming from digital images. In our case, it has fallen to me to digitize all these print-only newspaper titles (and those that haven’t partnered with us to send digital copies) using a large bed scanner called a Book Eye.
Above: An aisle of the ISL print newspaper room that holds the last of the COVID-era prints mailed to the library from 2017-2023. During the pandemic, microfilm production ceased for several months.
In addition, there will always be vintage print papers needing to be digitized (either scanned or photographed) for film preservation—these are the prints that are found in deserted places or donated by the public to fill date gaps in the newspaper collection. Print and digital filming both must continue—but with an eye on the future of the born-digital revolution. Soon enough, all newspapers will be published digitally (with no print option) and the digital-to-film preservation system will be the exclusive method, requiring new guidelines that improve over time.
In the bigger picture, digital and print “film prep” are similar undertakings. Pages must be put in order within each issue; each issue must be collated properly by date. In print form, this system includes ironing out the creases so that the photographed images don’t include dips and peaks. Also, the prep organizer can find the page numbers and dates at the top of every sheet to aid in the work. For digital prep, pages are individual images that must be saved to line up in page order and date order. In digital folders, the archivist can’t readily see the small number at the top of each page without opening the digital object in a new window. Collation must be done in the initial image-saving process to ensure their proper order. This is where the relationship between the creator (publisher) and archivist comes in.
The Rub——————————
When ISL first began responding to the decrease in print newspapers in 2023, it was decided that we’d cancel print subscriptions and begin pursuing digital newspapers to put on microfilm. It has been a challenge for me to instigate the transfer to digital images belonging to the publishers, but I understand the societal changes that drive the conversion.
Digital images like PDFs and JPEGs appear indestructible until bit-rot sets in and hard drives crash. “Deciders” outside the archival world keep deluding themselves that sites like Newspapers.com hold the key to preservation. Making a newspaper searchable online and the ability to save it are not the same challenges. If you are decider in the field of preservation, please read that again.
When some of us see shiny squirrels such as tariffs, price hikes, and the ever-changing world of film suppliers, we assume that microfilm will soon become obsolete (a decades-long argument). Then we start shutting down proven systems of preservation only to realize that the squirrel has run away. We also begin to think that there is no need to photograph or scan print newspapers any longer because some of them are only released digitally.
I’m not saying that microfilm won’t be discontinued one day. I’m saying that in the world of preservation, you can’t put on your CEO hat and start discontinuing practices because “business is change.” Jumping the gun on how newspapers are saved threatens to leave large gaps in the newspaper record for our children and grandchildren. Bottom line: Currently published newspapers will not survive even one generation if they are relegated to live as ones and zeros on an HD or a corporate database.
Solutions——————————
The upsides are the a-ha moments, discussions and ideas hatched between newspaper owners and preservationists. Conversations about preparing digital images for microfilming are necessary. So far, I have amassed digital sharing agreements from local publishers for 80 Indiana titles. The downside is that these agreements are tentative until they gain traction. For archiving to happen, the newspaper creator (whether it be the editor, family owner, or media company) must know how to save the image files in such a way that they remain organized by page number and date for proper filming (and searchability). I have noticed that providing guidelines to publishers can make them nervous about naming files correctly, leading to stalling in the sharing process. Jumping from a print subscription system to a direct digital legacy system, confusion should be expected. Again, by solving problems in ways that create efficiency, observations lead to new systems that will eventually become second-nature. For now, the effective newspaper archivist is the one who listens, brainstorms, and pivots. Soon enough, we will be back in our comfort zone and proven systems will prevail again.
Newspaper creators must be made aware of the era of preservation we are entering. Publishers are not archivists. In fact, many of them take the opposite view of scrambling for the next day’s issue. Once a paper is printed, the leftover images are an afterthought. As much as we all see print newspapers going the way of the dodo, the dodo walks–it doesn’t fly. It gets there, eventually. If the average newspaper repository’s partner film lab no longer digitizes with cameras or scanners in the film lab, archivists and their employers must be prepared to budget for systems and manpower to digitize the current remaining print newspapers. Many titles still loiter and threaten to leave time-gaps between the digital and tangible worlds if they aren’t processed “the old-fashioned way.” Like Doc and Marty in Back to the Future, we must traverse from one point in time to the other without destroying the entire timeline.
Above: The Book Eye machine engaged to digitize an open spread as two separate page-images in the ISL print newspaper room
The ISL newspaper department is responding to these challenges by making the following changes to our systems and policies:
- Newspaper title managers and editors coming on board to share digital images are being asked to consider sending digital copies of the 2017-2023 gaps in our collection. These gap-fillers will replace the print copies that would otherwise need to be scanned.
- The Book Eye large-bed scanner was moved from the digitization area of the library to the same floor as the newspaper department. This expedites my ability to digitize print newspapers during time chunks that come available.
- Volunteers are being scouted from local colleges to fill digitization roles in the newspaper room.
- Local libraries and being asked for any digital copies they may have for local newspapers.
Naturally, the owners of local newspapers should give permission before microfilm is created but they are usually won over by the idea of preserving the legacy of their work. Although preservation filming is considered fair game for an educational purpose, newspapers published after 1928 are copyrighted. This means that digital issues obtained for filming cannot be shared digitally with the public without permission. As we spend the winter planning and redirecting for 2026, ISL is grateful for the priceless contributions of local journalists and the newspaper owners who, against all odds, keep their proverbial doors open by relying on partnerships and sheer moxie. The New Year could offer no greater gift than providing the record of our lives, scrapbooks of common memories we share with our neighbors in every Hoosier town or village we inhabit. Cheers!