This page features brief excerpts of stories published by the mainstream
media and, less frequently, blogs, alternative media, and even obviously
biased sources. The excerpts are taken directly from the websites cited in
each source note. Quotation marks are not used.
Source: Lee White for the National Coalition for History
Aug 31, 2012
On August 30, the National Archives Information Security Oversight Office (ISOO) released the first Executive branch-wide Fundamental Classification Guidance Review covering 25 Federal agencies with significant classification programs. Agency summaries are available online [www.archives.gov/isoo/fcgr].
The review serves as a guide and benchmark for Federal agencies to ensure proper classification of information vital to national security, while expediting declassification by avoiding over-classification and unnecessary withholding of records. Accurate and current classification guides also ensure standardized classification within and across Federal agencies. Of the 3,103 classification guides reviewed, 869 were either cancelled or consolidated; numerous projects, programs, or categories were eliminated, revised, consolidated, or condensed.
Overall, the review shows that Federal agencies are streamlining classification guidance and more clearly identifying categories of what can be released and what needs to remain classified.
Review highlights include:
Source: Jakarta Post
Aug 31, 2012
Nearly five decades after the 1965 abortive coup, which was blamed on the Indonesian Communist Party (PKI), historians, observers and direct witnesses are still unable to agree about the masterminds behind the historical events.Speaking at the launch of Jusuf Wanandi’s memoirs Shades of Grey in Jakarta on Thursday, panelists recounted the confusing state of events during those fateful days.Jusuf maintains that then president Sukarno could not have been solely responsible for the actions of the PKI due to his ailing health and the rapidity of events....
Source: Lee White for the National Coalition for History
Aug 30, 2012
U.S. District Judge Catherine C. Blake has sentenced Barry H. Landau to seven years in prison, followed by three years of supervised release, for conspiracy and theft of historical documents from cultural institutions in four states, including the Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library in Hyde Park, New York.Landau had pleaded guilty to the charges earlier this year.The items stolen from the Roosevelt Library, which is part of the National Archives and Records Administration, were seven “reading copies” of speeches that Roosevelt delivered. They contained his edits and handwritten additions, along with his signature. They have all been recovered.Landau’s co-conspirator, Jason Savedoff, will be sentenced at a later date.Archivist of the United States David S. Ferriero said he was pleased that Judge Blake “recognized the seriousness of this crime and meted out an appropriate punishment that will serve as a warning to others who may contemplate stealing our nation’s history.”
Source: Lee White for the National Coalition for History
Aug 30, 2012
On August 24, a major overhaul in the way federal departments and agencies manage and preserve their records was ordered by the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) and the Office of Management and Budget (OMB).
In a directive to reform records management for the 21st century, NARA and OMB said that all agencies must begin to manage their records, including emails, in electronic format by the end of the decade.
The directive also requires each agency to designate a high-ranking agency official to oversee its records management programs and to ensure that all appropriate staff receive records management training.
Deadlines for complying with various parts of the directive are spread over the coming years.
Among the highlights of the directive issued are:
Source: Lee White for the National Coalition for History
Aug 30, 2012
The National Archives National Declassification Center (NDC) has issued its fifth biannual Report on Operations of the National Declassification Center, covering the period of January 1 through June 30, 2012. The report is available is online at www.archives.gov/declassification.
Report highlights include:
Source: Lee White for the National Coalition for History
Aug 30, 2012
The National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) recently announced $39 million in grants for 244 humanities projects.This funding will support a wide variety of projects, including collaborative research, archival conservation programs, the creation of new digital research tools, professional development opportunities for teachers and college faculty, traveling exhibitions, efforts to build long-term support for humanities initiatives at community colleges, and the production and development of films, television, and radio programs.This award cycle, institutions and independent scholars in 46 states and the District of Columbia will receive NEH support. Complete state-by-state listings of grants are available here (46-page PDF).In this cycle, grants were awarded in the following categories:
Source: Lee White for the National Coalition for History
Aug 30, 2012
More than $1.3 million in National Park Service grants have recently been awarded to help preserve, protect, document, and interpret America’s significant battlefield lands. The funding from the National Park Service’s American Battlefield Protection Program (ABPP) will support 27 projects at more than 75 battlefields nationwide.For a list of the grantees, click here. This year’s grants provide funding for projects at endangered battlefields from the Pequot War, King William’s War, the Revolutionary War, War of 1812, Civil War, World War II and various Indian Wars. Awards were given to projects in 17 states or territories entailing archeology, mapping, cultural resource survey work, documentation, planning, education and interpretation.
Source: Lee White for the National Coalition for History
Aug 30, 2012
The Department of State’s Office of the Historian recently released its latest volume of the Foreign Relations of the United States (FRUS), “Foundations of Foreign Policy, 1973-1976.”This volume documents the intellectual foundations of the foreign policy of the second Richard Nixon administration and the Gerald Ford administration. Unlike other volumes in the Nixon/Ford subseries, the documentation seeks to illustrate the collective mindset of Nixon and Ford administration officials on foreign policy issues in the broadest sense. Rather than the formulation of individual foreign policy decisions or diplomatic exchanges, the compilation takes as its canvas the entire record of the second Nixon administration and the Ford administration’s efforts to develop a grand strategy in foreign policymaking.The 151 year-old FRUS series presents the official documentary historical record of major foreign policy decisions and significant diplomatic activity of the U.S. Government.This volume was compiled and edited by Kristin L. Ahlberg and Alexander R. Wieland.
Source: Lee White for the National Coalition for History
Aug 30, 2012
In recognition of the historic and architectural/engineering significance of Boston’s Fenway Park, the National Park Service has listed the venerable, beloved ballpark in its National Register of Historic Places. 2012 marks the 100th anniversary of the Boston Red Sox initial season at Fenway Park.“Recognizing the incredible history of this ballpark through the National Register designation is a great way to bring the national parks and the national pastime together,” said National Park Service Director Jonathan B. Jarvis. “Fenway is a treasured American icon for baseball fans across the country. It, along with the Boston area’s 11 national parks, helps attract visitors from around the world to one of our nation’s most vibrant cities, expanding opportunities for business and tourism that generate economic returns for Boston and the nearby communities.”
Source: Lee White for the National Coalition for History
Aug 30, 2012
The Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) recently announced 152 awards totaling $18,113,376 matched with $34,666,759 of non-federal funds for Museums for America Program Grants. The IMLS also announced 14 awards totaling $1,442,312, matched with $1,903,034 of non-federal funds for Museum Grants for African American History and Culture.Click here to view the list of projects funded by the Museum for America Program Grants.Click here to view the list of projects funded under the Museum Grants for African American History and Culture.Use the IMLS grants search tool to view our archive of grants awarded by the Institute. Search grants by grant name, institution, or project type.
Source: Lee White for the National Coalition for History
Aug 30, 2012
The National Archives’ George W. Bush Presidential Library and Museum has launched its newly designed website: www.georgewbushlibrary.smu.edu. The website is hosted by Southern Methodist University (SMU), the site of the Library’s future facility.While the George W. Bush Presidential Library and Museum is still under construction on the campus of SMU, visitors will be able to visit virtually through the new interactive website, which features highlighted documents and artifacts from the Library and Museum’s vast collections. Through a variety of online media and exhibit galleries, researchers and visitors will be able to explore the lives and careers of President George W. Bush and Mrs. Laura Bush, and the American Presidency in general. Educators and students will also be able to find resources and tools to use regarding the events of the Bush Administration.
Source: Lee White for the National Coalition for History
Aug 30, 2012
The National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) recently announced a $1 million award to support the incorporation and launch of the Digital Public Library of America (DPLA), a groundbreaking project that seeks to digitize and bring together the contents of our nation’s libraries and archives, and make them freely available to all online.To be created through a coalition of libraries, archives, museums, and other nonprofit and academic entities in coordination with the Open Knowledge Commons, the Digital Public Library of America will ultimately serve as a single portal for diverse, interdisciplinary digital archives from a range of institutions. It would allow scholars, students, and lifelong learners to simultaneously access multiple collections. For example, a scholar researching the roles African Americans played during the Civil War would be able to search a wide range of collections with relevant materials, potentially ranging from military records and photographs to newspapers and early 20th century recollections.
Source: NPR
Aug 30, 2012
Scientists in Germany have been able to get enough DNA from a fossilized pinky to produce a high-quality DNA sequence of the pinky's owner."It's a really amazing-quality genome," says David Reich of Harvard Medical School in Boston. "It's as good as modern human genome sequences, from a lot of ways of measuring it."The pinky belonged to a girl who lived tens of thousands of years ago. Scientists aren't sure about the exact age. She is a member of an extinct group of humans called Denisovans. The name comes from Denisova cave in Siberia, where the pinky was found....
Source: Detroit News
Aug 30, 2012
Labor Day has multiple meanings for me. It marks the turning of the year, a closing summer picnic, the first day of school, the last day of my home state fair, the first inkling of autumn, and the day when the presidential campaign begins, as they say, "in earnest."This year, we have had no interruption in electoral politics. No matter. Labor Day remains that day when we experience both the full-throated pleasures of summer and the deep-voiced arguments of a colder season. Picnics, parades and politicians compete for our attention.Labor Day's conflicted purposes date back to its origins. Created during the troubled labor times of the late 1800s, the holiday was a tribute to all workers and, more importantly, to working-class voters. It was meant to honor wage-earners, those who, in labor's point of view, "created all value."...
Source: AP
Aug 30, 2012
ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) — The Cuomo administration is hoping a new statewide series of roadside signs designed to promote New York's rich history will help boost the state's economy by steering visitors to historic sites and cultural attractions.More than 200 signs were unveiled this week in Albany as part of Gov. Andrew Cuomo's "Path Through History" program, a $1 million initiative that will split the funding between 10 regional heritage tourism marketing plans across the state.The new signs planned for installation near Thruway exits and other New York highways highlight some of the state's most significant sites and historic milestones. State officials hope the briefly worded signs, along with related high-tech tools such as websites and applications for handheld devices, will entice travelers to seek out places where history was made in New York....
Source: Yahoo News
Aug 30, 2012
WARSAW, Poland (AP) — It could hardly have been a riskier mission: infiltrate Auschwitz to chronicle Nazi atrocities. Witold Pilecki survived nearly three years as an inmate in the death camp, managing to smuggle out word of executions before making a daring escape. But the Polish resistance hero was crushed by the post-war communist regime — tried on trumped-up charges and executed.Six decades on, Poland hopes Pilecki's remains will be identified among the entangled skeletons and shattered skulls of resistance fighters being excavated from a mass grave on the edge of Warsaw's Powazki Military Cemetery. The exhumations are part of a movement in the resurgent, democratic nation to officially recognize its war-time heroes and 20th century tragedies....
Source: Gawker
Aug 30, 2012
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The New York Times' Julie Bosman reports that Jonah Lehrer, the precocious New Yorkerwriter who was caught fabricating Bob Dylan quotes in his book Imagine, has resigned from the magazine. Here's his statement, via Bosman's Twitter feed:
Source: CNN.com
Aug 29, 2012
London (CNN) -- In 1948, a hospital outside London witnessed the birth of the Paralympic movement, as a Jewish doctor who had fled Nazi Germany sought to change the lives of patients with spinal injuries -- and inspire new hope in them through sport.The first "Stoke Mandeville Games" were organized in 1948 to coincide with the London Olympics, the second to be held in Britain.Named for the hospital in Buckinghamshire where Prof. Ludwig Guttmann's pioneering spinal injuries unit was based, the competitors in those initial Games -- 14 men and two women -- took part in a wheelchair archery contest....Four years later, inspired by Guttmann's vision, the first official Paralympic Games were held in Rome in tandem with the Olympics....
Source: Washington Examiner
Aug 29, 2012
A two-year archeological investigation of Fort Ward Park in Alexandria yielded a total of 43 previously lost graves, only three of which were marked.The dig, which began after descendants of those believed to be buried in the park asked city officials to locate the graves of their relatives, revealed artifacts and gravesites of Native Americans, Civil War soldiers and a post-war African-American community.And although city archeologist Pam Cressey said there are no plans to excavate or immediately identify the newly-discovered graves, she said she's grateful that the families of those who used to live in the area now have some closure....
Source: NYT
Aug 28, 2012
AFFILE, Italy — This village in the rolling hills east of Rome is known for its fresh air, olive oil and wine — and its residual appreciation of Benito Mussolini, whose image adorns some wine bottles on prominent display in local bars.This month, the town’s fascist sympathies became the subject of intense debate when its mayor unveiled a publicly financed memorial to one of its most controversial former citizens: Rodolfo Graziani, a general under Mussolini who was accused of war crimes at the end of World War II and earned the title of “the Butcher” in two campaigns during Italy’s colonization of North Africa in the 1920s and ’30s.
