I’m thrilled today to introduce a project that combines my biggest interests--oral storytelling and cultural heritage outreach. It’s appropriately called Tell History.

And it was developed by Alex Whitcomb and Sarah Hayes. They’re crowdsourcing video-based memories that they tie to themes, timelines and maps. We all have a friend or relative who has a fascinating story to tell. TellHistory.com can help you help them to share that story in historical context. It’s also an inspiring story about how you can take your passion, and evolve it into a platform for the greater good. Listen as Alex and Sarah describe their own bit of history in the development of this project….

1. What has the response been like?
2. I know from personal experience that it can be very difficult to build engagement in digital projects. How have you gotten so many folks to contribute videos to the project?
3. Tell me a little about how Tell History works ...
4. I think it’s interesting that you use a Theme of the Week to focus your contributions. How do you identify those?
5. What kind of audiences are contributing to Tell History, and what kind of stories are capturing your attention?
6. You’ve made it very easy for folks contribute to Tell History. Describe that process ...
7. How have you been using social media to support the growth of Tell History?
8. What kind of stories and themes are you focusing on for the future?
9. Describe what your “big picture” goal is for Tell History ...
10. A project of this scope only happens because of people who believe in you and what you’re trying to achieve. Are there any folks who have contributed to the site that you’d like to give a shout-out to?
11. How do folks connect with you online?

And that was Alex Whitcomb and Sarah Hayes. If you'd like to learn more about Tell History, you can find shownotes from this interview--along with all the relevant links-- at voicesofthepast.org.

While you're there, check out the series called “DigitalHeritage 1-2-3” These posts each contain three stories or websites that are on my radar, with a little bit of analysis about how they might be useful to you.

Have you ever dreamed of what it would be like to go back in time to take part in a historical event?

Our guest today has been involved in helping many folks do the next best thing. Her name is Carrie Phillips, and she is the director of marketing and communications at Historic Columbia in Columbia, South Carolina.

Historic Columbia used digital media to commemorate the 150th anniversary of the burning of that city during the American Civil War.

Can virtual connections and digital media yield tangible benefits for heritage resources? Dale Kronkright says “yes.” And, that’s based on his experience as head of conservation at the Georgia O’Keeffe Museum in Santa Fe New Mexico. In this interview, he’ll talk about the Georgia O’Keeffe Imaging Project. The project field-tested three technologies in “Computational Imaging” and brought its audiences along for the ride with real-time updates on the social web. Their approach was profoundly effective, without being too complex from the production standpoint. There’s a takeaway here for most any heritage project.

This show explores an approach to new media that we rarely get to see -- a coordinated, research-based strategy that brings together cultural heritage institutions throughout a country. One of the organizations spearheading  this efforts is the Royal Commission for the Ancient and Historical Sites of Scotland (RCAHMS). This interview features Philip Graham, Public Engagement Manager for RCAHMS. Philip will talk about the Digital Futures for Cultural Heritage Initiative, and how is own organization is going beyond social media engagement to encourage user-contributed content. If you’ve struggled to build consensus about digital outreach even within your own institution, you’ll find this interview compelling.

Pompeii: It's the world's most recognizable archaeological site. But did you know it was also the place where the iPad was first used as a field documentation tool. Archaeologists working at Pompeii have been pretty progressive in communicating their finds through new media as well. Working in this milieu of old and new is Dr. Steven Ellis. He directs the Pompeii archaeological research project at Porta Stabia. In this interview, he'll talk about the iPad project, including what it was like to be featured in an Apple ad campaign. Additionally, he'll explore other emerging technologies being used at the site and tell us the story about why he chose archaeology as a profession.

Have you  ever wanted to learn hieroglyphics? What if a podcast could help you with that? There is one out there and it's produced by this episode's guest. His name is Vincent Brown. Vincent is kind of a new media renaissance man, with a focus on Egyptology and the pyramids. In addition to the podcast he created, he also maintains blogs and a very active Twitter community. That's one of the things he's going to talk about is optimizing your Twitter participation for creating a community: crafting relevant tweets and how to optimize those with hashtags as well.

Click here for the transcript.

What if you could take your vacation time to not only see a new place, but meet new friends and use your hands to preserve built heritage all at the same time?

That's just the kind of unforgettable experience Jamie Donahoe facilitates around the world. She co-founded Adventures in Preservation with the mission to save the world’s architectural heritage by supporting community-driven preservation projects that seek to create economic and environmental sustainability.

Jamie has a very down-to-earth personality that comes through in her communication online as well. In this interview, she talks about how she uses the web to tell the stories of heritage resources. But, just as importantly, she'll explore how the Adventures in Preservation concept came about, and hopefully give you some insight into developing and marketing your own heritage brand.

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In this edition of the Voices of the Past audio podcast, we'll meet Kaitlin O'Shea. Kaitlin is the creator of the Preservation in Pink blog and newsletter. She will explain how the iconic pink flamingo, and a group of bloggy friends, have helped her  find her voice to take the conversation about historic preservation to a wider audience.

Click here for a full transcript of this interview

This episode features Jennifer Souers Chevraux of the blog MuseoBlogger. Now Jennifer helps museums and cultural organizations engage their audiences by developing compelling experiences and using new media to cultivate a new generation of patrons. Here's that interview.

Click here for a full transcript of this interview

“Who are you?” A simple question, but one that could take someone on the adventure of a lifetime. For Mike O’Laughlin of Irish Roots Cafe, it took him on a trip to discover his Irish roots and began his journey to help others find theirs using his books, blog, podcast and personal tours of Ireland. Today we join Bethany Frank as she talks with Mike O’Laughlin. Mike is going to explore the ease of podcasting and how he uses it to share connect folks around Irish heritage worldwide.

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