Australia: National Library Archives Graffiti Website

From NineMSN:

The National Library has archived a graffiti website because it has social and cultural merit, the Herald Sun reports.

The website boasts it has the nation’s largest online collection of street art photos, with more than 4000 images of graffiti and tags on trains and the streets, many taken in Melbourne.

The newspaper said on Monday the Melbourne graffiti website glorifies illegal tagging and features advice for vandals.

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National Library manager Paul Koerbin said the site was selected for preservation by the State Library of Victoria as part of the national Pandora program to selectively preserve a wide range of websites.

From the Herald Sun Article, “Graffiti site preserved for cultural value”

National Library manager Paul Koerbin said the site was selected for preservation by the State Library of Victoria as part of the national Pandora program to selectively preserve a wide range of websites.

Mr Koerbin said if a website was legal it was eligible for collection and the library did not censor or endorse the contents of sites.

“The reason it would have been selected is that it is a site that documents that activity and the graffiti that’s done in Melbourne and that represents society and culture,” he said.

Filed under: Archives and Special Collections, Digital Collections, Interactive Tools, Libraries, National Libraries, Preservation, Reports, Resources