Article: Shaking Up Israel’s National Archives (Interview with Israel’s Chief Archivist)

In a New Article From Tablet Magazine:

The state archives are home to everything from top-secret government deliberations to countless cultural artifacts to, apparently, footage of pre-state soccer matches. All this and more will soon become daily Internet fodder, as the blog begins releasing much of this hitherto inaccessible information online.
To find out more about these developments, I corresponded with Israel’s Chief Archivist, Yaacov Lozowick. A historian by training, Lozowick previously directed the archives of Yad Vashem for over a decade, while also maintaining a popular blog devoted to Israeli culture, politics, and Judaism. (He also ran a startup which specialized, fittingly, in gathering hard-to-find information for clients.) A year ago, he announced that he would be shuttering his blog to take up the position of chief archivist. Almost as an afterthought, he mused that the position would enable him to get a good sense of “what Israel’s various archives have, and what stories they tell. Perhaps, if I find the time, I’ll set up a blog that reports on interesting documents from our many archives. Perhaps.” Fast-forward to today and that musing has become a reality.

Read the Complete Article
See Also: Israel’s State Archives & National Library Will Participate in Initiative to Develop National Digital Heritage Plan (November 23, 2011)
See Also: Israel Broadcasting Authority Gives Public Access to Archival Treasures (January 30, 2012)

Filed under: Archives and Special Collections, Interviews, Libraries, National Libraries, News, Profiles, Reports