Hi Alison - I, too, heard the spot on NPR, and actually was delighted by it. On a couple of levels - I've so often thought over the years that what I do is often literally history detective work... Further I've described what I do as such to several of the people who ask what I do and have no idea what an archivist is or does - of course at that point I give a bit more context, too... I love that I get to truly follow leads and track things down - it doesn't take anything away at all from my title as an archivist - it only enhances it. Alison Stankrauff Archivist and Assistant Librarian Franklin D. Schurz Library Indiana University South Bend P.O. Box 7111 South Bend, Indiana 46634 (574) 520-4392 [log in to unmask] -----Original Message----- From: Archives & Archivists [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Alison Langmead Sent: Monday, June 26, 2006 2:31 PM To: [log in to unmask] Subject: History Detective? Judging from the librarian/archivist job title discussion, I know that = this may be be a contested topic, but...for anyone who listened to the = Morning Edition report on Mary Beth Corrigan, archivist at PNC/Riggs Bank= (http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=5503791), I wonde= r who else was somewhat insulted by the fact that, when Mary Beth introduce= d herself as "the archivist for PNC/Riggs Bank," the reporter's voice-over = comes back with, "But she is selling herself short; Mary Beth Corrigan is= a 'history detective.'" A "history detective?" Perhaps I'm being oversensitive here, but isn't = that a little condescending? She's an archivist for heaven's sake, which = is so much _more_ than that epithet suggests. Sigh. Should I just be glad that archivists are being praised in the pres= s? Alison A posting from the Archives & Archivists LISTSERV List sponsored by the Society of American Archivists, www.archivists.org. For the terms of participation, please refer to http://www.archivists.org/listservs/arch_listserv_terms.asp. To subscribe or unsubscribe, send e-mail to [log in to unmask] In body of message: SUB ARCHIVES firstname lastname *or*: UNSUB ARCHIVES To post a message, send e-mail to [log in to unmask] Or to do *anything* (and enjoy doing it!), use the web interface at http://listserv.muohio.edu/archives/archives.html Problems? Send e-mail to Robert F Schmidt <[log in to unmask]> A posting from the Archives & Archivists LISTSERV List sponsored by the Society of American Archivists, www.archivists.org. For the terms of participation, please refer to http://www.archivists.org/listservs/arch_listserv_terms.asp. To subscribe or unsubscribe, send e-mail to [log in to unmask] In body of message: SUB ARCHIVES firstname lastname *or*: UNSUB ARCHIVES To post a message, send e-mail to [log in to unmask] Or to do *anything* (and enjoy doing it!), use the web interface at http://listserv.muohio.edu/archives/archives.html Problems? Send e-mail to Robert F Schmidt <[log in to unmask]>