BCL Academic Audio & Video Blog

National Air and Space Museum: Webcast Archive

2011-10-19T08:42:00.000-07:00

National Air and Space Museum: Webcast Archive
http://www.nasm.si.edu/events/lectures/webcast/archive.cfm

Do you want to listen in to a talk about how the Apollo space program got launched? Or maybe you would like to learn about the science behind the spacesuit? Both subjects, and many more, are covered on this collection of webcasts from the National Air and Space Museum. The talks date back to 2007 and visitors can search through them at their leisure to find something that might catch their fancy. Some of the more recent talks include "Exploring Mercury by Spacecraft: The MESSENGER Mission" and "The Solar Dynamics Observatory: The Sun Up Close and Personal". Visitors can also learn about each speaker via a short bio and sign up for their Twitter feed here as well. >From The Scout Report, Copyright Internet Scout Project 1994-2011. http://scout.wisc.edu/

Independent Lens . STRANGE FRUIT | PBS

2011-03-22T07:48:00.000-07:00

Independent Lens . STRANGE FRUIT | PBS

Independent Lens Strange Fruit

[ http://www.pbs.org/independentlens/strangefruit/index.html ]

The accompanying website for the Independent Lens film "Strange Fruit", about the famous protest song, allows visitors to hear a clip, or the entire song, of a famous rendition sung Billie Holiday. Strange Fruit is a phrase that actually comes from a poem that was turned into a song, and the song became the most renowned protest song of the 1940s. Visitors unfamiliar with the song will find that the link, "The Film", on the homepage gives an informative several paragraph synopsis and history. It also explains the unusual turns the life of the poet/songwriter took. Visitors should not miss the "Protest Music Overview" link, which provides clips of other protest songs. These protest songs are grouped by time period and the topic of protest for the period. Visitors should start at the beginning with 1776 and slavery, and then just wander through the centuries of music. Some of the clips featured within the different time periods include "Fight The Power" by Public Enemy, "Ohio" by Neil Young, and "We Shall Overcome" sung by Mahalia Jackson.

Description provided by the Website or >From The Scout Report, Copyright Internet Scout Project 1994-2011. http://scout.wisc.edu/

For more suggested excellent and reviewed websites visit the Bloomfield College Library Electronic Academic Resource (BCLEAR)
[ http://bclearnow.blogspot.com/ ]. Feel free to share with colleagues and students.

Best wishes from the Bloomfield College Library!

The Red Brush

2011-01-10T06:44:00.000-08:00

The Red Brush

The Red Brush [ http://digital.wustl.edu/r/red/ ]

Created as part of Washington University's Digital Gateway initiative, The Red Brush project is a collection of texts in Chinese from a wide range of writings from Imperial China, by and about women writers. The materials here are available in both Chinese and English, and the project was designed to complete a narrative anthology entitled "Red Brush: Women Writers of Imperial China". The site makes the original Chinese version of over 500 poems available, along with English language translations. Visitors can use the advanced search feature here, or they can also just browse around at their leisure. The materials are divided into sixteen sections, and some of the highlights include "The full elder brother" by Ban Zhao and "The color of the water" by Hai Yin.

Description provided by the Website or >From The Scout Report, Copyright Internet Scout Project 1994-2008. http://scout.wisc.edu/

Dartmouth Jewish Sound Archive

2011-01-10T06:40:00.001-08:00

Dartmouth Jewish Sound Archive [ http://www.dartmouth.edu/~djsa/ ]

This tremendous archive at Dartmouth College grew out of a private collection assembled and digitally restored by Professor Alex Hartov. The Jewish Sound Archive Database and website were developed as a collaborative effort between Professor Lewis Glinert and Professor Hartov and several additional colleagues at Dartmouth. Currently, the collection has over 20,000 tracks available for online listening, and visitors should start by just using the "Browse" feature here. There's Jewish comedy ("Stories Our Jewish Mothers Forgot to Tell Us"), classical music, Jewish religious music, and much more. Also, users can perform a detailed search across the entire database. Visitors can also sign in to save their song selections for future listening, and they will definitely want to stop by this site numerous times.

Description provided by the Website or >From The Scout Report, Copyright Internet Scout Project 1994-2008. http://scout.wisc.edu/

Ephemeral Films : Free Movies : Download & Streaming : Internet Archive

2010-12-20T13:04:00.000-08:00

Ephemeral Films : Free Movies : Download & Streaming : Internet Archive

Ephemeral films are non-fiction films usually made for educational, industrial, or promotional purposes. The two classic ephemeral film collections found on the Archive are the Prelinger Archives and AV Geeks.

In addition to these classic collections, you may view guidance films from the post-World War II British government, drive-in movie intermission ads, and videos documenting the history of San Francisco from 1906 to the early 21st Century. Many of these films are available for free download. [From the website]

University of Oklahoma Libraries

2010-12-15T12:34:00.000-08:00

University of Oklahoma Libraries

The Bass Business History Collection at the University of Oklahoma Libraries began in 1955, and since that time the collection has grown to include books, videos, journals and oral histories. The oral histories here include 24 interviews with business professors at the University about everything from the time management studies of Frederick Taylor to the development of organizational theory. Visitors can browse the alphabetical list of interviewees on the right-hand side of the page, and they have the option of listening to the interview or downloading it for later use. Also, visitors can browse the interviews by key names, words, or subjects. Finally, users can opt to sign up for updates when new interviews are added to this enticing collection. >From The Scout Report, Copyright Internet Scout Project 1994-2010. http://scout.wisc.edu/

Government Accountability Office (GAO) Podcast: Watchdog Report

2010-12-06T08:35:00.000-08:00

Government Accountability Office (GAO) Podcast: Watchdog Report

In January 2010, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) began to reach out to a new audience by offering podcasts. The podcast program is called the "Watchdog Report" and its focus is on "interviews with GAO officials on significant issues and new products." The hosts of the program are GAO staff members, and recent programs have included reports on the disclosure of airline service fees, federal efforts to develop biosurveillance capability, and health care services for women veterans. Every week, a new podcast is posted on the site, and visitors can sign up for their RSS feed or subscribe via iTunes. Anyone with an interest in governmental affairs and related matters will find this podcast quite useful, and it might even be a nice complement for courses dealing with civics. >From The Scout Report, Copyright Internet Scout Project 1994-2010. http://scout.wisc.edu/

Television Without Borders | Link TV

2010-12-04T06:31:00.000-08:00

Television Without Borders | Link TV

Mission

Link Media is an independent media organization whose mission is to engage, inform and inspire viewers to become involved in the world.

Link Media is committed to:

* Providing powerful stories and unseen perspectives. Link’s programs encourage compassion and an imaginative empathy that reaches beyond the viewer’s own surroundings and extends beyond borders, real and perceived.

* Giving voice to people without a voice, from communities under-represented in conventional media. We connect viewers not only to the 'movers and shakers' but also to the 'moved and shaken’— people affected by the news.

* Linking local to global. The stories we present help people draw the connection between themselves and others, as well as how local issues have broader implications.

* Inspiring action. Program trailers and the website give viewers access to tools and connections to take action on social issues. Link programs counter the cynicism and resignation that can result from watching conventional television news.

* Promoting dialogue across cultural and ideological divides through innovative media formats.

* Fostering collaboration through coalition building with partner organizations and grassroots organizations around specific issues that matter to all of us.

Link TV was created in 1999 and it is dedicated to "providing global perspectives on news, events and culture." It is, as its homepage says, "television without borders", and visitors to the site can watch topical documentaries, listen to world music, and check out their podcast series. In the "Watch" area, the site profiles some of the more recent offerings, which include everything from Middle East news digests, a Taarab music festival from Morocco, and a documentary on child rights. Along the bottom of the homepage, visitors can look over the archives of series like "Made in Taiwan" and "World Music Videos". The site is quite media rich, and visitors can also sign up to receive updates via Twitter, Facebook, and MySpace. Finally, visitors can use the "Get Involved" area to learn more about how they can continue the conversations around some of these programs in other venues. >From The Scout Report, Copyright Internet Scout Project 1994-2010. http://scout.wisc.edu/

U.S. State Department: Video

2010-06-02T10:39:00.001-07:00

U.S. State Department: Video

http://www.state.gov/video/

Recently, the U.S. State Department revamped their website to include more video features, and these additions will be a real boon to members of the general public, journalists, and policy analysts. The videos are divided into four primary categories: "Top Stories", "Secretary of State", "Daily Briefing", and "In Other News". As one might imagine, the "Daily Briefing" contains a short briefing from a State department official on the pressing matters of the day. The "Secretary of the State" section features remarks by the Secretary on various diplomatic matters, missions, and other work. Most people will probably want to visit the "Daily Briefing" video area, as it’s a good way to get a sense of the current priorities of the Secretary of State's office. Interested parties can also sign up to receive RSS feeds of these various proceedings. >From The Scout Report, Copyright Internet Scout Project 1994-2009. http://scout.wisc.edu/

Nixon Tapes

2010-05-17T11:41:00.001-07:00

Nixon Tapes [Real Player]

http://www.nixontapes.org/

A number of organizations have offered the general public selections from the secret tapes made by President Richard Nixon between 1971 and 1973, but the Nixon Tapes project under the direction of Professor Luke A. Nichter at Texas A&M University-Central Texas aims to bring together a complete online audio archive of all the tapes in question. The project is well under way, and the site contains a tremendous number of full-length tapes and transcriptions. It's no small task, as the sound quality on the tapes ranges from unintelligible to acceptable. Visitors can click on the "Audio & Transcripts" area to listen those tapes that are currently available. The project is an ambitious one, and it will certainly warrant several return visits. >From The Scout Report, Copyright Internet Scout Project 1994-2009. http://scout.wisc.edu/

Museum of Contemporary Art: Podcasts

2010-04-26T08:40:00.000-07:00

Museum of Contemporary Art: Podcasts [iTunes]

http://www.mcachicago.org/interactive/podcasts.php?page=podcast

The podcasts available on the Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago's website offer "Exhibition Audio Tours", "Talks and Discussions" and "Educator Salons"; something for everyone. Each podcast can be listened to online, or downloaded for later listening. Helpfully, each of the podcasts is divided into smaller "Entries", so visitors can pick and choose which parts of the podcast they would like to hear. The "Exhibition Audio Tours" includes a podcast entitled "Artists in Depth", which features curators and preparators of the MCA discussing several artists' works in an exhibition, including "Leon Golub Reclining Youth", "Bruce Nauman Elliot's Stones", and "Cindy Sherman Untitled #153". The "Educator Salons" podcasts are designed to "engage teachers in explorations of timely pedagogical issues, provide access to provocative speakers, and promote an open exchange among peers and colleagues." The podcasts appear to do just that, judging by the following podcasts "Deciphering Otherness: A Celebration of Contemporary Identity", "The 21st Century Learning Environment: Fresh Ideas, New Contexts", and "TEACHER DISPOSITIONS: The process and practice of teacher leadership". Visitors can also click on the orange "+ View Full Archive" at the top of each type of podcast for many more interesting discussions.

FedFlix

2010-04-21T13:16:00.000-07:00

FedFlix

http://www.archive.org/details/FedFlix

Is the United States government in the business of making films? As it turns out, the answer is a hearty "Yes". As part of a joint venture between the National Technical Information Service and Public.Resource.Org, the Internet Archive has created this excellent archive of government training films from the past six decades. As with other Internet Archive thematic collections, visitors will find a "Spotlight Item" on the left-hand side of the page, and users are also encouraged to browse the collection by title or subject. The films come from a wide variety of government agencies, including the U.S. Army, the U.S. Information Agency, and NASA. Visitors might want to start by looking at one of the "Most Downloaded Items Last Week". Recent selections from this list have included the 1967 film "China: The Roots of Madness" and "Apartheid in South Africa" from 1957. >From The Scout Report, Copyright Internet Scout Project 1994-2010. http://scout.wisc.edu/

Audiovisual Library of International Law

2010-02-19T16:27:00.001-08:00

Audiovisual Library of International Law [pdf]

http://www.un.org/law/avl/

The United Nations' Audiovisual Library of International Law was first proposed in 1997, and in recent years it has grown by leaps and bounds. It is a unique multimedia resource that provides "high quality international law training and research materials to an unlimited number of recipients on a global level." The Library consists of a "Historic Archives" section, along with a "Lecture Series" section, and an online research library with links to treaties, jurisprudence, publications, and research guides. In the "Historic Archives" section, visitors will find a drop-down menu with links to topics such as disarmament, human rights, and the laws of outer space. The "Lecture Series" section includes dozens of lectures organized by subject matter headings ranging from the Arctic to the United Nations. Subject experts deliver the video lectures and it's easy to see how these talks could be used to complement classroom lectures and discussions. Finally, the research library is a great tool for those seeking to explore various facets of United Nations treaties and other aspects of international jurisprudence. As a bonus, the site starts off with Orson Welles reading the Preamble to the Charter of the United Nations. >From The Scout Report, Copyright Internet Scout Project 1994-2008. http://scout.wisc.edu/

The Archaeology Channel Video Guide

2010-02-16T10:39:00.000-08:00

The Archaeology Channel Video Guide [Real Player, Windows Media Player]

http://www.archaeologychannel.org/content/videoguide.asp

Based in Oregon, The Archaeological Legacy Institute (ALI) was founded in 1999 in order to bring "the benefits of archaeology to a wider constituency." They have succeeded mightily in this quest, and their main website contains a wide range of educational resources, reports, and other relevant materials. One of their most fascinating resources is their collection of video programs. Visitors can use the "Video Guide", found on the homepage, to view over 50 ALI programs in their entirety. Most of the programs are under an hour in length, and they include profiles of ancient mound builders in Louisiana, the history of an abandoned farming community in North Carolina, and excavation work at the Foguang Temple in China. Overall, it's a remarkable site, and if visitors are inclined to do so, there's a place for them to make a donation on the site. >From The Scout Report, Copyright Internet Scout Project 1994-2008. http://scout.wisc.edu/

Podcasts from the Society for Applied Anthropology & the University of North Texas

2010-02-05T13:42:00.000-08:00

Podcasts from the Society for Applied Anthropology & the University of North Texas [iTunes]

http://sfaapodcasts.net/

The Society for Applied Anthropology (SfAA) has moved into the world of podcasts quite nicely with this fine set of talks, lectures, and discussions culled from their annual meetings. The site was created and is currently maintained by Jen Cardew, a master's student in applied business anthropology at the University of North Texas. Those individuals who've never listened (or heard about) podcasts or weblogs may wish to first visit the "About Podcasts & Blogs" area on the homepage. After that, visitors can click on the "Short Cut to Podcasts" area to move directly to the podcasts, which include "Working with Governmental Agencies", "Mobile Work, Mobile Lives: Cultural Accounts of Lived Experiences", and "Embodied Danger: The Health Costs of War and Political Violence". All told, there are over two dozen podcasts currently available here, and more are on the way. Finally, visitors can sign up for their RSS feed here as well. >From The Scout Report, Copyright Internet Scout Project 1994-2008. http://scout.wisc.edu/

Podcasts from the University of Oxford

2010-02-04T09:29:00.000-08:00

Podcasts from the University of Oxford [iTunes]

http://podcasts.ox.ac.uk/

The University of Oxford offers free podcasts of lectures by Oxford professors on this very fine website. Nine different divisions of the University are represented, including the Humanities, Medical Sciences, Continuing Education, and Life Sciences. By clicking on "show media items" under the description of each lecture, you can see all the titles in the lecture series, and choose from there. In "Philosophy" under the Humanities division are the distinguished John Locke Lectures, which include twelve different talks. In the Social Sciences Division, you will find topics such as the "Environmental Change Institute Podcasts from Oxford University" that consist of lectures, seminars, and interviews. "Forced Migration Online Discussions" include exchanges between experts, interviews with refugees, and lectures at the Refugee Studies Centre. Overall, the site is a great educational resource and one that could be used in any number of classroom settings. >From The Scout Report, Copyright Internet Scout Project 1994-2008. http://scout.wisc.edu/

Institute for Public Policy Research IPPR

2009-09-08T07:25:00.000-07:00

Institute for Public Policy Research IPPR Podcasts and Audio Archives [http://www.ippr.org/podcasts/] - Audio available as MP3s and iTunes subscriptions, including:

Tomorrow's Capitalism: Growth after the financial crisis

Climate Change: Will there be agreement in Copenhagen?

Tomorrow's Capitalism Debate: A new international order?

National Gallery of Art: Videos & Podcasts

2009-05-20T08:00:00.000-07:00

National Gallery of Art: Videos & Podcasts [iTunes]

http://www.nga.gov/podcasts/

The National Gallery of Art is one of America's finest treasures and they continue to offer a host of new resources for people who can visit the museum in person and those who cannot. The resources here are divided into six primary sections, including "Audio Podcasts", "Music Podcasts", and "Audio Tours". These offerings are also organized chronologically, and visitors will find discussions of French painting ("The Magic of Fontainebleau") by curator Kimberly Jones, performances by The Choir of St George's Chapel, and an excerpt from a documentary on painter Joseph Mallord William Turner. The podcasts are a real treat as well, and they offer a great preview of new exhibits, such as the recent "Afghan Treasures" and the Vogel Collection of minimalist and post-minimalist art. >From The Scout Report, Copyright Internet Scout Project 1994-2008. http://scout.wisc.edu/

Europa Film Treasures

2009-05-12T06:11:00.000-07:00

Europa Film Treasures [Macromedia Flash Player]

http://www.europafilmtreasures.eu/

From La Strada to L'Auberge Epsagnole, European cinema has delighted audiences for well over a century. This remarkably wonderful site brings together over 80 films from 15 different European countries, and while cineastes will be well served by the offerings, even casual visitors will find much to admire here. With substantial support from a number of organizations (including the MEDIA Programme of the European Union), this online film archive includes films held by institutions like the British Film Institute and Filmarchiv Austria. What is perhaps most impressive about the site is that visitors can search for films of interest by country of origin, genre, sound (silent, soundtrack, or other), and film archive. While the site warrants a number of visits, new visitors may wish to check out the 1947 French animated feature "Anatole à la Tour de Nesle" and the 1958 "Once upon a Tram", a wistful look back at the Irish tram that linked the tiny villages of Howth and Sutton on the County Dublin coast. The site is rounded out by a clutch of educational resources designed for use in the classroom. >From The Scout Report, Copyright Internet Scout Project 1994-2008. http://scout.wisc.edu/

Explorations in Black Leadership

2009-05-07T07:50:00.000-07:00

Explorations in Black Leadership

http://www.virginia.edu/publichistory/bl/index.php

Over the past several years, the Institute for Public History at the University of Virginia has been compiling a set of interviews with important black leaders across the United States. The project is co-directed by Phyllis Leffler and noted civil rights leader Julian Bond. By recording these experiences and comments, they hope that they can "implicitly connect the ways in which historical circumstances create the conditions for the future." Currently, there are over 30 interviews available, including talks with politician Eleanor Holmes Norton, publisher Earl Graves, and comedian and social critic Dick Gregory. Visitors can read transcripts of the interviews, read a short biographical statement, and also listen to each interview. >From The Scout Report, Copyright Internet Scout Project 1994-2008. http://scout.wisc.edu/

British Library: Archival Sound Recordings: Music from India

2009-04-14T10:38:00.000-07:00

British Library: Archival Sound Recordings: Music from India

http://sounds.bl.uk/Browse.aspx?category=World-and-traditional-music&collection=Music-from-India

The ethnomusicologist Rolf Killius has recorded traditional Indian music for the British Library for more than a dozen years, and the Archival Sound Recordings website for the Library has samples of some of the folk, devotional, and ritual music of India that he has recorded. The website allows the visitor to listen to the music by location and the locations to choose from are in the middle of the page. Visitors who click on a location will be shown all the songs available, and then clicking on the + sign next to the name of the song will reveal some of the details about the musicians, when the song is played and sung, and how it's played. To view the remaining details of the song and also listen to it, visitors should click on the song's description to be taken to a full text description and the player that allows visitors to listen to it. Visitors shouldn't miss the "Sora Healing Song" from the Orissa location, which is an almost 10 minute long recording of a repeated three note beat that accompanies a healing ritual that uses trance. The repeated beat is definitely conducive to falling into a trance-like state. >From The Scout Report, Copyright Internet Scout Project 1994-2009. http://scout.wisc.edu/

Distinctive Voices@ The Beckman Center

2009-03-06T08:19:00.000-08:00

Distinctive Voices@ The Beckman Center [ ] - At the Beckman Center in Irvine, California they certainly leave no scientific stones unturned. Through their "Distinctive Voices" public events series they bring in experts to talk about the science of chocolate, the causes of obesity, and the transposable elements sequences of DNA. While many visitors may be unable to make it to these events in person, they are encouraged to listen and watch via the online archive provided here. Currently, the archive contains several dozen lectures, and they include such intriguing offerings as "What is the Scientific Method?", "Ghost Hunters: Can Science Explain the Supernatural?", and "The New Industrial Revolution". Visitors should also wander over to "The Sounds of Science" podcast, which is produced by The National Academies. It is quite a delight, and visitors who get hooked may wish to subscribe here. >From The Scout Report, Copyright Internet Scout Project 1994-2008. http://scout.wisc.edu/

Los Angeles County Museum of Art: Videos and Podcasts

2009-01-27T08:48:00.000-08:00

Los Angeles County Museum of Art: Videos and Podcasts [QuickTime, iTunes]

http://www.lacma.org/art/ScreeningRoom.aspx

Art lovers who can't make it down to 5905 Wilshire Boulevard in Los Angeles will enjoy mulling over some of the videos and podcasts presented on this site. Currently, the site has over fifty different programs, and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art will continue to add new programs over the coming months. In the "Current Features" area, visitors can take a walk through the new museum campus and also learn a bit about an exhibition that highlights the work of Salvador Dali. Other visitors may be more interested in the "Public Programs" area. Here they can listen to conversations and dialogues with the likes of Anthony Hernandez, Ken Gonzales-Day, Jeff Koons, and John Baldessari. Finally, the "Documentaries" area offers up profiles of Jacob Lawrence, a group of contemporary potters, and noted fluorescent light artist Dan Flavin. >From The Scout Report, Copyright Internet Scout Project 1994-2008. http://scout.wisc.edu/

The Archeology Channel

2008-12-03T08:03:00.000-08:00

The Archeology Channel [http://www.archaeologychannel.org/index.asp] - The mission of Archeological Legacy Institute ALI is to develop ways to make archaeology more effective both in gathering important information about past human lifeways and in delivering that information to the public and the profession. A fundamental postulate is that archaeology has important messages to deliver accurately and completely to people worldwide about our origins and development as a species and that among these messages are those about mistakes we have made in the past and must not make in the future. In essence, ALI is devoted to archaeological research and its contributions to science and to humanity. In the furtherance of this mission, ALI, its associates, and its employees adhere to the Principles of Archaeological Ethics promulgated by the Society for American Archaeology.

Poetry Podcast Podcasts

2008-11-21T11:38:00.000-08:00

Poetry Podcast Podcasts [http://www.podcastdirectory.com/podcasts/505] - Poetry readings and lectures at The University of Chicago. Poets include: Charles Bernstein / Durs Grünbein / Michael Blumenthal / Clayton Eshleman / Jim Powell / Lyn Hejinian / C.K. William / and many more!

May be uploaded to your iPhone, also downloaded as MP3.

Folkstreams.net

2008-10-22T12:26:00.000-07:00

Folkstreams.net [http://www.folkstreams.net/] - Folkstreams.net has two goals. One is to build a national preserve of hard-to-find documentary films about American folk or roots cultures. The other is to give them renewed life by streaming them on the internet. The films were produced by independent filmmakers in a golden age that began in the 1960s and was made possible by the development first of portable cameras and then capacity for synch sound. Their films focus on the culture, struggles, and arts of unnoticed Americans from many different regions and communities. [SOURCE: http://www.folkstreams.net/pages/about.html]

Encyclomedia

2008-09-26T07:49:00.000-07:00

EncycloMedia.com™ [http://www.encyclomedia.com/ ] is a free video encyclopedia that covers everything you need to know or want to learn. If your passion is entertainment, fitness, health, history, nature, people, science, spirituality, religion, or travel - free video encyclopedia provides the access you need.

A fair amount of video though the quality of the site seems a little uneven.

Inside an American Factory: Films of the Westinghouse Works, 1904

2008-08-05T10:52:00.000-07:00

The Library of Congress, American Memory: Inside an American Factory: Films of the Westinghouse Works, 1904: The Westinghouse Works Collection contains 21 actuality films showing various views of Westinghouse companies. Most prominently featured are the Westinghouse Air Brake Company, the Westinghouse Electric and Manufacturing Company, and the Westinghouse Machine Company. The films were intended to showcase the company's operations. Exterior and interior shots of the factories are shown along with scenes of male and female workers performing their duties at the plants.

Free Documentaries

2008-07-01T11:11:00.000-07:00

FreeDocumentaries.org [http://freedocumentaries.org/] - Freedocumentaries.org strongly believes that in order to have a true democracy, there has to be a free flow of easily accessible information. Unfortunately, many important perspectives, opinions, and facts never make it to our televisions or cinemas (you can watch movies in our media category if you want to know why).

For this reason they decided to start freedocumentaries.org, a site where anyone with an internet connection can watch a movie to educate themselves or simply explore another perspective whenever they please. These movies aren't just for education but are also for entertainment. As a secondary objective freedocumentaires.org allows independent filmmakers to have their message heard by viewers that they may not normally reach.

Their goal is to have everyone that watches a film at freedocumentaries.org learn something; whether it be a new perspective on a topic, simply understanding a conflict, or being more accepting of a certain belief system. They are proud to say that the vast majority of people that watch our films are glad they did so. In fact many people become addicted to watching documentaries after seeing a movie on our site. [Description provided by the website]

New York Public Library: Webcasts

2008-06-02T11:47:00.000-07:00

New York Public Library: Webcasts [http://www.nypl.org/audiovideo/index.cfm?go=5] - The New York Public Library offers hundreds of public events every year, and for those persons who can't make it to 42nd Street and 5th Avenue, this website will allow them to listen and watch videos of these interesting events. Currently the site features over fifty of these events and they include conversations with Werner Herzog, R. Crumb, Orhan Pamuk, and Ken Burns. A number of the events are drawn from collaborative partnerships with organizations such as the PEN American Center. Some of the fruits from this particular partnership are available here as well, including conversations with Zadie Smith, Amartya Sen, and Salman Rushdie. Make some tea, find a suitable viewing position, and plan on making a few return visits to check out the new offerings on this site.

Edison National Historic Site

2008-05-20T10:45:00.000-07:00

Edison National Historic Site Sound Archives [http://www.nps.gov/archive/edis/edisonia/sounds.html] - The archive at Edison National Historic Site includes approximately 48,000 disc and cylinder records produced by Edison in West Orange, New Jersey, between 1888 and 1929. Many of these, including unreleased and experimental recordings, have been at the Laboratory since Edison's lifetime. Some of the earliest examples of recorded sound in existence are preserved within this unique collection.

Best Online Documentaries

2008-05-12T08:36:00.000-07:00

Best Online Documentaries [http://best.online.docus.googlepages.com/] - As of May 2008, 684 documentaries available for free in the areas of biography, anthropology, business, environment, geopolitics, and more.

FORA.tv: The World is Thinking

2007-11-12T06:34:00.000-08:00

FORA.tv: The World is Thinking [http://www.fora.tv/] - There are brilliant ideas, expressed everyday in public discussions and events, all over the world.

Don't miss them.

FORA.tv delivers discourse, discussions and debates on the world's most interesting political, social and cultural issues, and enables viewers to join the conversation. It provides deep, unfiltered content, tools for self-expression and a place for the interactive community to gather online.

Travel to New York and pick up the Village Voice. Or look in TimeOut London. Or check out the San Francisco Chronicle, the Los Angeles Times, the Sydney Morning Herald. Every day, poets, authors, policy experts, activists, madmen, government leaders, visionary thinkers speak in public, hosted by institutions such as nonprofit councils, bookstores, universities, or public spaces. If you're lucky, their remarks will be covered by the press, edited and compressed, and hard to find when you want it.

But you can't be there. You can't express your opinions. You can't chat with other likeminded or different-minded listeners. You can't easily search for similar content, study background material, read the transcript.

FORA.tv enables a new, global media opportunity by aggregating a daily range of events, produced and electronically shipped by institutions or freelance producers, from around the world. The word fora is simply the plural of "forum." The dictionary definition of forum is: the public square or marketplace of an ancient Roman city that was the assembly place for judicial activity and public business. FORA.tv expands the public forum for discussion of important world issues to multiple, simultaneous fora in a digital venue. Today, we invite you to participate in the FORA.tv experience.

All information in this post has been provided by FORA.tv http://www.fora.tv/aboutfora.php

Ten Notable New Yorkers

2007-09-07T17:45:00.000-07:00

The Notable New Yorkers Web [http://www.columbia.edu/cu/lweb/digital/collections/nny/index.html] site offers audio recordings and transcripts of interviews with ten influential New Yorkers, drawn from the collections of the Oral History Research Office of the Columbia University Libraries. These interviews, conducted by the Office between 1955 and 2001, open an imaginative portal into twentieth-century New York City and the ways in which it has deeply affected the culture and history of the United States and the world beyond. With three background essays and a briefer methodological introduction for each oral history, this site also provides a revealing look at the art of the biographical interview—a methodology developed by the Office over its four and a half decades of existence—in which individuals who have shaped history reflect upon their lives and accomplishments. (Description provided by website publisher)

Each entry includes an introduction, profile, photo gallery, audio and transcript, and an index of names. Sound files require RealPlayer.

Race, Gender and the New Political Landscape

2007-08-15T12:14:00.000-07:00

Race, Gender and the New Political Landscape - Presented by the University of Virgina Podcasts and Webcasts - 2/15/07 - Mary Frances Berry, former U.S. civil rights commissioner and longtime activist, speaks at the University of Virginia on Feb. 15 in Old Cabell Hall Auditorium. Berry was the keynote speaker for Black History Month and heads the list of several notable visitors and events held at the University.

Available in MP3, Flash and Video Flash.

Online Audio and Video Recordings: UC Berkeley Lectures and Events

2007-06-25T08:05:00.000-07:00

Online Audio and Video Recordings: UC Berkeley Lectures and Events [http://www.lib.berkeley.edu/MRC/audiofiles.html]

Not the prettiest site to look out but it is chock full of some cool audio content. The Free Speech Movement Cafe features The Politics of Food and US Chemical Warfare: The Tragedy of Agent Orange. Also included are: James Baldwin - Noam Chomsky - Bill Clinton - Umberto Eco - Michel Foucault - Aldous Huxley - Malcolm X - and, many poetry readings!

Formats inlcude MPs, Real Audio

American Rhetoric

2007-05-09T08:05:00.000-07:00

Audio Content

Title: American Rhetoric [http://www.americanrhetoric.com]

Description: Includes the Online Speech Bank, an index to and growing database of 5000+ full text, audio and video (streaming) versions of public speeches, sermons, legal proceedings, lectures, debates, interviews, other recorded media events, and a declaration or two.

Top 100 Speeches, a complete index to and partial text and audio database of the 100 most significant American political speeches of the 20th century, according to 137 leading scholars of American public address, as compiled by Stephen E. Lucas (University of Wisconsin-Madison) and Martin J. Medhurst (Baylor University).

Movie Speeches, Full text, audio and video database of over 160 Hollywood movie speeches, as selected by audiences of American Rhetoric. A new movie speech is added every 3 weeks. Included are military movie speeches, sports-oriented movie speeches, forensic movie speeches, and social-political movie speeches, among others.

Rhetorical Figures in Sound, 200+ short audio clips illustrating stylistic figures of speech ranging from alliteration to synecdoche. Clips are taken from speeches, movies, sermons, and sensational media events and delivered by politicians, actors, preachers, athletes, and other notable personalities.

This is quite a remarkable compilation of speeches! Audio recordings of many famous speeches and orators are included. Some of the people and themes represented are: John F. Kennedy, Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr., Malcolm X, Bill Clinton, Barack Obama, 9/11 speeches, Lincoln anti-slavery speech, great Native American speeches, and many others. The site is well organized and searchable. An added plus is the text provided for many of the speeches. You may read along as you listen.

Format(s): MP3, Streaming Audio

All descriptions provided by American Rhetoric.

LibriVox

2007-04-25T08:42:00.000-07:00

Audio Content

Title: LibriVox [http://librivox.org/]

Description: LibriVox volunteers record chapters of books in the public domain and release the audio files back onto the net. Their goal is to make all public domain books available as free audio books. They are a totally volunteer, open source, free content, public domain project. (Description provided by LibriVox)

Format(s): MP3, Podcast, ogg files

From Jane Austen to Oscar Wilde to Emile Zola, LibriVox contains thousands of public domain works. Easily searched and simple to use, LibriVox is a great way to catch up on your listening!

Nature Podcasts

2007-04-23T14:38:00.000-07:00

Audio Content

Title: Nature Podcasts [http://www.nature.com/podcast/index.html]

Description: Produced by the renowned Nature Publishing Group (NPG). Nature Publishing Group (NPG) is the scientific publishing arm of Macmillan Publishers Ltd, combining the excellence of: Nature, Nature research journals, Nature Reviews, Nature Clinical Practice journals and NPG academic journals, to provide the world's premier information resource for the basic biological and physical sciences. (Description: http://npg.nature.com/npg/servlet/Content?data=xml/02_welcome.xml&style=xml/02_welcome.xsl)

Format(s): MP3 and Podcast Subscriptions

Listen to audio sound recordings about science related topics including: cancer, chemistry, genetics, heredity, neuroscience, stem cells, and physics.

UbuWeb

2007-04-19T12:50:00.000-07:00

Audio Content

Title: UbuWeb [http://www.ubu.com/]

Description: UbuWeb is a completely independent resource dedicated to all strains of the avant-garde, ethnopoetics, and outsider arts. [Description provided by UbuWeb]

Format(s): MP3

An audio rich site well worth your time to check out. Includes audio by John Cage, Marcel Duchamp, Edgard Varese, poetry, and performance.

"Crossing" the Caribbean: Cultural Identity, Transnationalism, and the Impact of African-American Gospel Music in Jamaica

2007-04-12T10:25:00.000-07:00

Audio Content

Title: "Crossing" the Caribbean: Cultural Identity, Transnationalism, and the Impact of African-American Gospel Music in Jamaica [http://www.virginia.edu/uvapodcast/search.php?submit=true&school=2#]

Description: Ethnomusicologist Melvin Butler describes how African-American gospel music is affecting Pentecostal churches in Jamaica. Sponsored by University of Virginia Podcasts & Webcasts.

Format: MP3 - 20.6 meg file

The Gnostic Society Web Lectures

2007-04-09T08:21:00.000-07:00

Audio Content

Title: The Gnostic Society Web Lectures [http://www.gnosis.org/lectures.html]

Description: For over fifty years The Gnostic Society in Los Angeles has sponsored activities dedicated to furthering an understanding of Gnosis and Gnosticism. The Society's "Friday Evening Lecture Series", directed for the last three decades by Dr. Stephan Hoeller, provides a distinguished and uniquely focused forum for individuals interested in Gnosticism, Jungian psychology, Kabbalah, mythology, and other subjects related to Gnosticism.

Format(s): MP3

A mix of free and sale audio lectures.

Poetry Center of Chicago

2007-04-04T08:46:00.000-07:00

Audio Content

Title: Poetry Center of Chicago [http://www.poetrycenter.org/]

Description: When it began, The Poetry Center pioneered the first independent, for the public and regular poetry reading series in the city of Chicago. No other arts organization offered monthly poetry events where people gathered to listen to poetry. In providing a consistent, decades-old reading series that is high profile and well attended, The Poetry Center has contributed to and sustained public interest in poetry and live poetry readings. [Description: http://www.poetrycenter.org/about/index.html]

Format(s): MP3

Currently, this site includes poetry readings by Lawrence Ferlinghetti, Billy Collins, and Lisel Mueller.

Fulgencio Batista: Volume 1, From Revolutionary to Strongman

2007-03-28T11:49:00.000-07:00

Audio Content

Title: Out of the Shadows: Writing About a Forgotten Dictator. Recorded 27 March, 2007
File type: MP3
Length: 1:41:00

Description: A conversation with Dr. Frank Argote-Freyre, author of the first biography in English about Cuban dictator, Fulgencio Batista.

For Dr. Argote-Freyre, a Cuban-American, writing the biography was an act of self-examination: could he be detached enough from the subject to write about a man who before Fidel Castro was one of Cuba's most famous, and notorius, leaders? Could he be objective about the history of Cuba? Furthermore, was it ethical for a Cuban historian to write about such a controversial topic as Cuba before Castro? There are some of the topics Dr. Argote-Freyre addresses in this presentation.

Presenter: Frank Argote-Freyre is a professor of history at Kean University (NJ) and works as an activist in the Latino community. He lives in Freehold, New Jersey.

Moderator: Dr. Richard Hart, Cyrus H. Holley Professor of Applied Ethics

Sponsoring organization: Holley Discussion Series on Ethics, Bloomfield College, Bloomfield NJ

Play file by clicking here OR (right click and "save as")

Voices from the Days of Slavery

2007-03-28T10:18:00.000-07:00

Voices from the Days of Slavery: Former Slaves Tell Their Stories - The almost seven hours of recorded interviews presented here took place between 1932 and 1975 in nine Southern states. Twenty-three interviewees, born between 1823 and the early 1860s, discuss how they felt about slavery, slaveholders, coercion of slaves, their families, and freedom. Several individuals sing songs, many of which were learned during the time of their enslavement. It is important to note that all of the interviewees spoke sixty or more years after the end of their enslavement, and it is their full lives that are reflected in these recordings. The individuals documented in this presentation have much to say about living as African Americans from the 1870s to the 1930s, and beyond.

All known recordings of former slaves in the American Folklife Center are included in this presentation. Some are being made publicly available for the first time and several others already available now include complete transcriptions. Unfortunately, not all the recordings are clearly audible. Although the original tapes and discs are generally in good physical condition, background noise and poorly positioned microphones make it extremely difficult to follow many of the interviews. [Description provided by the Library of Congress]

Files are provided in Real Audio, MP3 and WAV formats.