THE LOCAL TRANSMISSION · ONLINE SEASON 1 · UES-204
Living Archive: Oral History, Image & Sound
ARCHIVE + MEMORY
Practice keeping as a relationship: listen carefully, request consent, preserve enough context, and make a record another person can understand without claiming ownership of their life.
- Module time
- About 2.5–3 hours per module
- Pace
- Start anytime · no deadlines · pause and return.
- Completion
- Any four modules plus the final course outcome.
- Materials
- Phone, recorder, or text-only interview method · Scanner, phone camera, or descriptive object-record option · Headphones when available · Secure temporary storage for consented working files
WHY THIS CLASS EXISTS
Make observation useful to somebody else.
Practice keeping as a relationship: listen carefully, request consent, preserve enough context, and make a record another person can understand without claiming ownership of their life.
Builds from Season 0: UES-102, UES-107.
HOW THE ROOM RUNS
Prompt. Fieldwork. Studio. Receipt.
- 01Module prompt
One central question opens each module. The source shelf is optional; the page itself contains the full path.
- 02Field task
One 60–90 minute act of looking, making, recording, or hosting.
- 03Self-guided studio
A 75-minute making, editing, or reflection session you can complete alone.
- 04Module receipt
A 20-minute useful trace kept privately or shared only when you choose.
YOUR PRIVATE COURSE DESK
Start here. No account required.
Check off modules as you work. Progress stays in this browser; the university never receives your name, work, location, email, or wallet.
0 of 5 completion steps · finish any four modules plus the final outcome.
Local progress is ready. You can also use the class without saving anything.
THE SIX-MODULE ROOM
A complete first syllabus.
Everything required is printed here. References named inside modules are optional; use this on-page toolkit whenever a module asks for a check, scenario, ledger, or handoff.
- MODULE01
What right do we have to keep, edit, or publish another person’s story?
Consent, Care, and the Ethics of Keeping
On-page prompts + optional references
- Oral History Association ethics and consent principles
- Community archive consent and withdrawal examples
- On-page consent map: decide separately whether to listen, record, quote, edit, identify, preserve, publish, and remove later
Self-guided studio
Separate permission to listen, record, edit, preserve, publish, identify, and mint.
Field task
Write a purpose statement and run the consent-map self-check. Optional peer feedback may precede an optional interview, but the self-check and object-story route count equally.
Module receipt · private by default
A reusable plain-language consent map with distinct yes, no, later, and withdraw choices.
- MODULE02
How can a small question open a story without steering it?
Listening and Interviewing
On-page prompts + optional references
- Open-ended interview question patterns
- Active listening and silence exercises
- Trauma-aware boundary and referral prompts
Self-guided studio
Practice opening, follow-up, silence, correction, scope, and a respectful ending through a scripted solo rehearsal; optional paired practice counts the same.
Field task
Complete a short unrecorded solo listening rehearsal using a self-owned memory or object and revise the plan. Rehearsing with another person is optional.
Module receipt · private by default
The final interview or object-story plan without private participant information.
- MODULE03
What technical choices preserve meaning without creating unnecessary risk?
Record, Scan, Describe
On-page prompts + optional references
- Basic audio recording and room-tone guidance
- Library scanning and descriptive metadata basics
- On-page file check: neutral filename, no unnecessary personal data, original plus working copy, two storage locations when possible, access restriction, and deletion date
Self-guided studio
Run simple phone recording, scanning, photography, transcription, and description demonstrations.
Field task
Record the bounded interview or document the selected object using the agreed consent path.
Module receipt · private by default
A redacted technical log naming format, duration, backup, and any access restrictions.
- MODULE04
What can be shortened, reordered, clarified, or left alone?
Edit Without Rewriting a Life
On-page prompts + optional references
- Oral-history transcript editing conventions
- Audio edit, ellipsis, correction, and review practices
- Examples of participant review before release
Self-guided studio
Edit a short excerpt, mark every intervention, and test the difference between clarity and distortion.
Field task
Prepare the draft record and run the editorial-integrity self-check. For an optional interview, return it to the participant for correction or reaffirmed consent; the self-owned-object path needs no outside approval.
Module receipt · private by default
An editorial decision log that does not expose restricted content.
- MODULE05
What must travel with the record, and what must not?
Metadata, Rights, Context, Omission
On-page prompts + optional references
- Dublin Core-inspired descriptive fields in plain language
- Copyright, license, traditional-knowledge, and privacy distinctions
- On-page record fields: title, creator, contributor if consented, date, privacy-safe place, description, rights, access, format, source, version, and backup location
Self-guided studio
Build a compact record with title, creator, contributor, date, place, description, rights, access, format, and source.
Field task
Complete metadata, rights statement, accessibility assets, preservation copy, and deletion/withdrawal instructions.
Module receipt · private by default
A metadata card with restricted fields visibly withheld rather than silently missing.
- MODULE06
How can an archive invite attention without turning a person into content?
Open a Listening Room
On-page prompts + optional references
- Small listening-room and community exhibition formats
- Content note, transcript, image-description, and quiet-access examples
- On-page stewardship fields: access level, withdrawal path, correction contact or note, review date, preservation copy, deletion request path, and responsible keeper
Self-guided studio
Conduct a final rights, context, access, and preservation self-review. Participant review applies only to an optional interview, and a listening room is optional.
Field task
Finish the living archive record and choose public, limited, delayed, or private deposit.
Module receipt · private by default
A private-by-default record or, optionally, a public catalog stub describing why the record remains limited or private; either counts equally.
WHAT COMPLETION MEANS
No grades. Real work.
- 01
Consent and interview plan · suggested after module 2
Write the purpose, invitation or self-owned-object boundary, recording choice, withdrawal path, access limits, and intended afterlife before collecting material. - 02
Ten-minute interview or object scan · suggested after module 4
Collect one bounded, consented story or document one self-owned or public-domain object with context. - 03
Living archive record · suggested after module 6
Publish or privately deposit an edited record with image, transcript or audio, metadata, rights, credits, and preservation copy.
Complete any four of the six module receipts and finish the course outcome or a private equivalent. There are no grades, deadlines, peer requirements, or public-posting requirements.
ACCESS IS PART OF THE SYLLABUS
More than one way through the room.
- Every instruction is readable on the public course page; audio or video references require a transcript or equivalent text path.
- Every required prompt, scenario, rubric, and checklist is written on this course page; named sources are optional references, not missing course materials.
- Low-bandwidth, print-friendly syllabus with no paid platform or subscription required.
- No live attendance, camera, account, wallet, or public posting is required.
- Progress stays in this browser unless the learner chooses to download a private completion receipt.
- A self-authored memory or public-domain object-study path when interviewing another person is inappropriate or unavailable.
- Independent route
- Active now. The complete sequence, studio prompts, access paths, and private checklist are on this page.
- Optional faculty profile
- An oral historian, librarian, community archivist, or audio producer experienced in consent, rights-aware publication, listening, and humane editing.
- Supported cohort
- Optional and funding-dependent. Human review or scheduled sessions never gate access or completion.
- Planning cost
- $3,700 for maintenance, access, materials, and an optional supported cohort—not tuition or admission.
Learners retain copyright. Public licensing and Tezos minting are optional and separate. A wallet, public identity, public artifact, or blockchain transaction is never required for this class.
THE ROOM IS OPEN
Bring one place. Leave one useful trace.
Start now, move at your own pace, and keep the work private if that is the right path. Human help and supported cohorts can be added without changing anyone’s right to learn independently.
Support does not buy admission, curriculum control, governance rights, or faculty appointments.