This is a follow on from previous extract sent out.....
SOCIETY OF AMERICAN HISTORIANS WEIGH IN ON SMITHSONIAN "SHOWTIME" DEAL; 
SI SECRETARY SMALL RESPONDS TO THE AHA

This also goes along with the efforts of the NPS and Forest Service for advertising.  http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2006/03/31/business/main1459795.shtml


NCH WASHINGTON UPDATE (Vol. 12, #20; 28 APRIL 2006)
by Bruce Craig (editor)
NATIONAL COALITION FOR HISTORY (NCH)
Website at http://www.h-net.org/~nch/

SOCIETY OF AMERICAN HISTORIANS WEIGH IN ON SMITHSONIAN "SHOWTIME" DEAL; 
SI SECRETARY SMALL RESPONDS TO THE AHA
The prestigious Society of American Historians, an elite organization 
comprised of 250 fellows whose books promote literary distinction in the 
writing of history, has passed a resolution condemning the Smithsonian 
Institution's (SI) commercial arrangements, including the Showtime deal as 
well as a commercial publishing agreement relating to Smithsonian 
Books.  The resolution vigorously protests the Smithsonian's "increasingly 
commercial approach to its mission" and calls for the Smithsonian to 
reconsider its contract with Showtime.  The Society also suspended 
Smithsonian Books as a publisher-member of the Society of American Historians.

The resolution signed by Executive Secretary Mark C. Carnes, President 
Frances FitzGerald, Vice President Eric Foner, and 26 other acclaimed 
historians including Robert Dallek, David Kennedy, James McPherson, Mary 
Beth Norton, Laurel Thatcher Ulrich, and Tom Wicker states, "We understand 
the economic pressures that pushed the Smithsonian into contracting with 
Showtime, but Smithsonian cares for the artifacts of the nation's heritage 
as a public trust; there can be no justification for optioning that 
heritage to any private interest....We emphatically concur with the 
American Historical Association, which has concluded that Smithsonian's 
relationship with Showtime constitutes a 'violation of the trust of 
generations of Americans who donated materials to which they believed the 
public would have free, open, equal, and non-discriminatory access forever.'"

The Society also took issue with the character of the Smithsonian's 
agreement with publishing behemoth Harper Collins that was signed in 
February 2005 with little attention or scrutiny by the scholarly 
community.  As a result of that agreement some 300 titles from the more 
than 1,000 pending projects on the Smithsonian Press's roster were 
transferred to the publisher; about 230 were retained for the scholarly 
publishing unit still under the direct control of the Smithsonian but 
others were dropped. Several Society members were particularly concerned 
that the transfer of some history titles and curtailment of marketing for 
others took place often with no consultation with the authors.

The reference in the Society's resolution to the American Historical 
Association (AHA) letter refers to a letter sent by AHA President Linda 
Kerber to Smithsonian Secretary Lawrence Small (see "Groundswell Builds in 
Opposition to Smithsonian "Showtime" Deal" in NCH WASHINGTON UPDATE, vol. 
12 #19; 20 April 2006) in which the AHA expressed "alarm and deep dismay" 
about the semi-exclusive nature of the agreement with Showtime that in 
essence violates the AHA "Statement on Standards for Professional Conduct" 
relating to open access to archives.  This week, in a two-page response to 
Kerber, Smithsonian Secretary Lawrence Small responded.

In his letter to Kerber Small declared, "I want to assure you and the 
community of historians, archivists, librarians, and researchers you will 
not be excluded or restricted from access to the Smithsonian archives, 
collections and libraries and our staff."  He explained that "the area that 
appears to be the basis for actual concern is for filming rights at the 
Smithsonian."  He boldly declared "Concerns that the new venture is 
exclusive is false." Small emphasized that the proprietary (hence secret) 
agreement with Showtime impacts only producers "who wish to make 
significant use of the Smithsonian's resources and then sell their product 
to commercial media distributors."  The AHA is preparing a statement on 
Small's response.

Stan Berryman
Cultural Resources Program Manager
AC/S Environmental Security
Box 555008
Camp Pendleton, Ca 92055-5008

Office 760-725-9738
DSN         365-9738
Fax    760-725-9722

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