Council on Library and Information Resources - Recordings at Risk

Under this grant, Washington University Libraries digitized more than 1,400 audio recordings of Assembly Series lectures from 1949 through 2008. This represents all the analog media including ¼” audio tapes, audio cassettes, Hi-8, and VHS. All of these formats are magnetic media, which is inherently unstable for a variety of reasons.

Risk to the collection

These magnetic media formats consist of a base with a magnetic coating. This coating adheres to the base with the use of binders, which are highly susceptible to a form of deterioration known as sticky shed syndrome. There are treatments –such as baking –that can temporarily reduce the effects of sticky shed to allow playback and digitization. However, that is only effective in the early stages of deterioration, making early mitigation efforts essential.

In addition to sticky shed, the ¼” audio tapes are acetate-based, making them susceptible to a chemical deterioration called vinegar syndrome. Vinegar syndrome causes irreversible warpage and brittleness, making the recordings no longer playable.

Along with deterioration concerns, the technological obsolescence of magnetic media puts this collection at further risk. The physical equipment needed to play these recordings is becoming scarce and difficult to find. Given these risks to the magnetic media, we were at risk of losing this significant collection without the work performed under this grant project.

The recordings after 2008 were considered outside the scope of the Recordings at Risk grant because they were on CDs or DVDs. However, the University Libraries also digitized these recordings, making the entire collection accessible.