Digital History and Memory - Update May 23rd
News links, articles and recommendations compiled by Steffen Jost
Dear Readers,
Welcome to another edition of this newsletter on digital history and memory, where I give you an overview of the articles, projects and podcasts that I discovered over the last few weeks.
Worth mentioning at the beginning is the new MEMO Study, published by the Foundation Remembrance, Responsibility and Future (EVZ) on the status quo of memory culture in Germany the other week. While it's not about digital matters (for this you'll have to take a look at the previous editions on their website), the study is of course extremely important for gaining insight into the current attitude toward Nazi history in Germany (➡️ https://t1p.de/4zpri).
But I also compiled a list of interesting online exhibitions, podcasts, apps and articles that I came across. Again the list is quite extensive this time as I kept my new rhythm and compiled two of my LinkedIn posts into one newsletter.
One of the projects I discovered is a digital map with the last addresses of 40,000 Jews in Prague and links them to a database of Holocaust victims. I immediately looked up the address of the Airbnb where I stayed last November and of course there is an entry on the map for the house. Among the 6 people mentioned in the database, four were murdered. Vilém Weiss for example, who is listed as murdered in Auschwitz. In the online collection of the Arolsen Archives, there is a registration card of him from Theresienstadt, which lists a transport to "Osvětim" on September 6th, 1943. This shows how accessible digital collections can help us easily research biographies like this.
Source: https://collections.arolsen-archives.org/de/document/5131169
If you happen to have a project or article that you would like to see included in one of the upcoming editions, please let me know via digitalhistoryandmemory@substack.com or LinkedIn. As always, you can also simply connect with me on LinkedIn or follow me on BlueSky. In the meantime I hope to give you enough interesting things to read, watch and experience with these new discoveries.
If you like this format, please forward it to your friends and colleagues and encourage them to subscribe!
Enjoy reading these new discoveries
The Landecker Digital Memory Lab has launched the new digital publication "Digital Memory Dialogues." It begins with a provocation by Victoria Grace Richardson-Walden: "Can the Holocaust Be Made Playable?" ➡️ https://lnkd.in/eGZebyzK
"The Holocaust as a Meme – How History is Reinterpreted in Digital Spaces." A brochure by the Anne Frank Educational Center, edited by Dr. Deborah Schnabel and Eva Berendsen. ➡️ https://t1p.de/1vim8
The Hertie School examined the impact of the digital history project #everynamecounts by the Arolsen Archives. I attended an exciting event on this the other week. All the results from Ruth Ditlmann, Berenike Firestone, Ph.D. and Oguzhan Turkoglu can be found in this paper. ➡️ https://t1p.de/wx1wq
Pia Schramm and Christoph Bareither have compiled their knowledge from designing the Chapter App and present a guide for app development: "Designing a Museum App for Political Engagement." ➡️ https://t1p.de/74iqm
The digital exhibition "Nachgegraben" (Dug Up) by the Active Museum Berlin deals with an action in May 1985. On the grounds of the former RSHA in Berlin, 60 people meet and begin to dig. A project by Miriamne Fields, Fabian Hickethier, Cornelia Siebeck, Kaspar Nürnberg and many others. ➡️ https://t1p.de/hlwsi
The German Digital Library presents their new virtual exhibitions in their newsletter. For example, about expropriations in the Soviet Zone and GDR by the German Historical Museum. ➡️ https://t1p.de/ccue7
How can the museum be reimagined in digital space? The publication "Virtual Museums - A Plea" addresses this question. For the MFG newsletter, Julia Römhild, Anja Kircher-Kannemann and Theresa Stärk present some key points. ➡️ https://t1p.de/pf23r
I discovered two new mapping projects. The Nazi Crimes Atlas collects cases of Nazi injustice at thousands of locations in Germany based on trial records. ➡️ https://lnkd.in/dEQxkuRX
On the MemoMap, on the other hand, the addresses of 40,000 Holocaust victims and 1,700 antisemitic incidents in Prague can be viewed, often with photos and sources. ➡️ https://memomap.cz
The German Federal Agency for Civic Education is organizing the Summer School "TikTokracy" in July. With inputs from Susanne Siegert and Ole Liebl, among others. ➡️ https://t1p.de/pq98q
On Deutschlandfunk, di.kla, the learning platform of the Jewish Museum Berlin, was featured. ➡️ https://t1p.de/tl5u3
Victoria Grace Richardson-Walden wrote a paper for the UN on promoting digital Holocaust remembrance: "Sustainable Digital Futures for Holocaust Memory and Education. Recommendations for Funders and Policymakers." ➡️ https://t1p.de/9jrny
German TV-magazine Aspekte streamed a pretty good episode with the semi-good title "Nazi Games and TikTok Commemoration," which covers Paintbucket Games among other things. ➡️ https://t1p.de/yey0x
Christian Huberts took up the topic of digital games and memory culture in an NDR production and spoke about “Erinnern. Die Kinder vom Bullenhuser Damm. ➡️ https://t1p.de/a1t7q
Dom Schott spoke with Timo Hellmers (Foundation Schleswig-Holstein State Museums Gottorf Castle) for OK COOL about the new digital game "Two Point Museum." ➡️ https://t1p.de/6dmf6
In the ARD Audiothek, the first episodes of the 2nd season of "NS-Cliquen: von Menschen und Mörder" (Nazi Cliques: Of People and Murderers) are available. Among others by and with Stefan Hoerdler, Janine Funke and Susann Reich. ➡️ https://t1p.de/42t01
Tobias Ebbrecht-Hartmann and Alina Bothe spoke for the SIP Podcast about Digital Holocaust Historiography. ➡️ https://lnkd.in/eSW_xcER
"Die Geschichtsstunde: Didaktik im Dialog" (The History Lesson: Didactics in Dialogue) is a new podcast that deals with intersectionality, inclusion and historical-political education, among other topics. ➡️ https://t1p.de/0upt3
The Auschwitz Memorial has created a virtual 1:1 model of the main camp that can be licensed by filmmakers: "…offering filmmakers a revolutionary tool rooted in accuracy and ethical storytelling." ➡️ https://t1p.de/nmi8k
PastPhone is a museum installation by timbotoni with which visitors can make phone calls with an AI version of a historical person. ➡️ https://t1p.de/8l3ry
"Creating Meaningful Interactions with Cultural Heritage in Immersive Environments" is an introductory guide to the topic of XR. Helpful for those who have little prior knowledge. Among others by Gabrielle Aguilar van Gend, Rasa Bocyte and Philine Kreuzer. ➡️ https://t1p.de/jmr6u
"KI für Alle 1: Einführung in die Künstliche Intelligenz" (AI for Everyone 1: Introduction to Artificial Intelligence) is a free online course from the Heine Center for Artificial Intelligence and Data Science (HeiCAD). ➡️ https://t1p.de/bhrjv
As mentioned before, I was invited by the EVZ Foundation to participate in a discussion titled "Emotion overload? A conversation about new approaches to learning about National Socialism." The recording is now available on the fiundation’s YouTube channel.