KQED's Forum How to Create a Family Archive
Jul 25, 2025
Nisa Khan is a KQED reporter with a focus on digital hoarding and cultural experiences. Shanna Farrell, an oral historian at UC Berkeley, brings expertise in personal narratives, while Jackie Forsythe, an audiovisual archivist, specializes in home video preservation. Together, they dive into the emotional journey of creating family archives, providing practical tips for digitizing cherished memories. They discuss the importance of oral histories in keeping family stories alive and address concerns about cultural loss and accessibility in preserving personal histories.
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Start Family Oral Histories Simply
- Ask family members open-ended questions about early life and sensory memories to record oral histories.
- Use familiar topics like recipes to gently encourage storytelling.
Scan Photos Autonomously with Family
- Avoid third-party scanning if privacy concerns exist; scan important photos yourself if possible.
- Host scanning parties with family or friends to digitize large collections cooperatively.
Preserve Voicemails as Open Files
- Download voicemails from your phone and convert Apple proprietary files to open formats like MP3 or WAV.
- Store backups on hard drives to protect audio memories beyond specific platforms.
