June 2015

Novocastrian website archived for generations to come

A website initiative developed by Newcastle creative agency Out of the Square Media (OOTS) has been selected to be archived by a joint venture of the National Library of Australia and the State Library of NSW.

The website, newcastleinspired.com.au has been deemed significant enough to be added to PANDORA, the Australian Web archive based on its “lasting cultural and historical value”, a state library spokeswoman said.

The site currently features content produced by OOTS such as the “Feel Inspired” video clips and footage of the Anzac Memorial Walk as well as historical footage compiled to mark the 25th Anniversary of the 1989 earthquake.

OOTS founder Marty Adnum said the self-funded website was created to house significant and inspirational moments from our past and present, so it was tremendous to receive an email asking for permission to archive it for posterity.

“The National and State libraries of Australia are committed to preserving selected websites of lasting cultural value for longterm access by the Australian community. Only a relatively small number of websites are assessed as being significant enough for PANDORA” - a State library spokeswoman said.

The videos featured on the website have received more than 60,000 views and have been shared locally, nationally and internationally.