The Memory Keepers
(2021)
This feature presents the cornerstone project of the Buffalo Broadcasters Association (BBA). It lays out the goals and challenges in preserving and utilizing Buffalo’s archival TV news film and videotape dating back to the mid-1960s.
This piece is the most recent in a series of videos tracing the history of The Archive Project.
“The Memory Keepers” was presented at the Buffalo Broadcasters Hall of Fame induction ceremony on November 4, 2021
(Runs: 7:12)
The Archive Project History
(5 Parts: 2006 - 2011)
(Total running time: 22:49)
The history of The Archive Project is presented here by Rich Newberg in a series of five features. They document a period of awakening to the value of archival TV news footage, and show how painstaking efforts are underway to preserve the moving images that reflect more than a half century of life on the Buffalo-Niagara Frontier.
Rich Newberg is a founding member of the Buffalo Broadcasters Association and former Archive Task Force chairman for the BBA.
His five video reports were presented during most of the BBA's Hall of Fame ceremonies between 2006 and 2011.]
(Summary of Reports)
The Archive Project (2006)
Runs: 3:51
*Edison’s historic moving images of Buffalo are presented as well as a vision for The Archive Project
*The first meeting with Buffalo television executives is documented
*Recommendations are given for saving Buffalo’s TV news film collection
The Archive Task Force (2008)
Runs: 4:00
*A task force is created to seek grants for digitization of TV news film in the BBA's possession
*University at Buffalo senior research scholar Michael Frisch signs on to create a system for categorizing and indexing digitized material
*Highlights of major Buffalo news stories from the 1960s and ’70s are referenced (civil rights riots, Blizzard of ’77, Love Canal, Attica uprising, Jack Kemp’s political rise to power)
The Journey Begins (2009)
Runs: 4:39
*First boxes of TV news film are itemized from the year 1966
*A vision is presented for a museum and resource center to house the collection
*First meeting is conducted with Buffalo area colleges and universities
*The BBA’s Archive Project is featured at a national conference of the Institute of Museum and Library Services held in Buffalo
*Conference presenter Dr. Michael Frisch calls Buffalo “one of the most important media centers in the country, of the evolution of television news.” He references Western New York natives Tim Russert, Wolf Blitzer, and political satirist Mark Russell
Buffalo Moments in Time (2010)
Runs: 3:52
*A database is created listing the slugs of all 15-hundred WIVB-TV (formerly WBEN-TV) news stories from the year 1966, the first full year of the BBA’s collection
*Scene Savers of Covington Kentucky sends representative John Walko to advise BBA leadership on how best to preserve and utilize the archival news film
*Dr. Michael Frisch illustrates how his company, Randforce Associates, is able to catalogue and index all the digitized footage for easy access
*BBA president Dave Gillen says, “We’ve got all the pieces in place. We just need the money to do it.”
The Scene Savers (2011)
Runs: 6:00
*The step-by-step digitization process is documented by Scene Savers staffers working on the BBA’s Archive Project.
*Mr. Newberg says future projects will range from documentaries, to classroom presentations, to museum exhibits
*The project seeks to complete the mission of the BBA to make Buffalo’s moving image history accessible to the public, “so that future generations will know their roots and will appreciate the contributions of Buffalo’s broadcasting pioneers.”
Official Launching of The Archive Project (2019)
WIVB-TV Report
Runs: 3:24
On March 29, 2019, the Buffalo Broadcasters Association (BBA) officially launched The Archive Project. The BBA established written agreements with WIVB-TV (Nexstar/CBS) and WKBW-TV (Scripps/ABC) to digitize their news film and early videotape archives. The moving image archive will be made available for educational use only.
Through BBA fundraisers, donations, and grants from the Western New York Library Resources Council, digitized news reports and clips dating back as early as the mid-1960s began being posted on the New York Heritage website. Postings will also appear on the BBA’s own website.
This WIVB-TV news report by News 4 anchor Jacquie Walker shows viewers the scope of the project and why the initiative is a valued resource for Western New York and the nation.]
Official Launching of The Archive Project (2019)
WKBW-TV Report
Runs: 2:05
The BBA collection of archival Buffalo TV news film and video tape becomes the first of its kind on the New York Heritage website. Rich Newberg, one of the chief architects of the project, comments that the collection will document “huge stories, huge challenges that faced this community.”
He says the archive holds valuable lessons for “seeking better solutions in the future.” He adds, “It’s the journalists, the reporters and photographers, who basically gave their communities the first draft of history. And that’s why we think it’s so vital to bring this back.”
Actor Ed Asner Endorses The Archive Project
(Recorded: September 20, 2019)
Runs: :60 sec.
Ed Asner, who played television’s legendary news director Lou Grant on the Mary Tyler Moore Show, endorsed the BBA’s Archive Project in a public service announcement. The endorsement was recorded while Mr. Asner was in Rochester, New York performing a one man show.
Asner endorsement:
“Hello. I’m Ed Asner. You may remember me as television’s no-nonsense news director, Lou Grant. If you think about it, journalists provide us with our first draft of history. Right here in Buffalo, more than 50 years of TV news coverage is being brought back to life! Local stations are working with the Buffalo Broadcasters Association to bring back the stories that helped define the Niagara Frontier. It’s called The Archive Project, and I support it with all my heart! So should you.”]
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