You’ve probably already seen this video. It’s doing the rounds. I just wanted to underline the key message it has to offer us. A media artefact has a cultural and creative potential that exceeds its own boundaries. That is to say – when media is open and not locked away, culture benefits.
Some of the source material for this clip (indeed, this whole album of material) is probably pretty mediocre by itself. But as has been pointed out so often, creativity builds upon the past – and sometimes you can make very interesting things out of found or discarded objects.
This video could probably be the poster child for a more open and enlightened approach to a media commons. I’m going to be on a panel about sound archives at Unlocking Audio at the British Library next week. This will no doubt come up.