National Archives and Records Service film-vault fire at Suitland, Md. : hearings before a subcommittee of the Committee on Government Operations, House of Representatives, Ninety-sixth Congress, first session, June 19 and 21, 1979 (1979)

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38 I am Eubmitting a copy of this report along with my testimony. This study was reviewed by the Film Archives Advisory Committee, and accepted as a basic document for guidance in making decisions regarding this significant portion of our American legacy. Among the key points are: • Access to records of the past is fundamental to the precepts of a democratic society. The preservation of newsreels will increase opportunities for the study and teaching of American history, and due to the uniqueness of the record, will allow the recreation of the past as a visual form. • The National Archives, a federal agency, is best equipped to act as a central newsreel depository. The National Archives has forty years of newsreel experience to fall back upon; it already possesses the basis for a national newsreel collection and good working relationships with the newsreel owners. • Between 15 to 30 million dollars will be required to preserve endangered newsreels. • Finally, paper documentation such as the newsreel continuity sheets should be preserved along with the films. The concensus of the Film Archives Advisory Committee was that the National Archives should take the responsibility for the newsreel preservation effort, that it should drastically expand the scope of its nitrate preservation program to include not just the film presently held by the National Archives, but also the remaining newsreel material held privately. Mr. Chairman, I would like to encourage the Committee to favorably consider present and future funding requests from the National Archives to deal with the preservation of nitrate film. It is necessary to deal with this problem promptly lest deterioration or the ravages of fire intervene to deny us the opportunity to conserve these unique and priceless records of our nation.