2024 Oral History Association Annual Meeting

Working remotely is now an ongoing and necessary methodology in the oral historian’s toolkit. In this roundtable, staff of Baylor University’s Institute for Oral History will discuss adapting traditional best practices and procedures to a remote environment while maintaining the high standards oral historians hold dear, and facilitate conversations with participants on the experiences—both good and bad—with remote interviewing and it’s permanence in the oral history profession.

ABSTRACT: Since the global COVID-19 pandemic, working from a distance is now an ongoing and necessary approach in the oral historian’s toolkit. Based on the research and content of their new publication, Oral History at a Distance (2024), the experienced team members of Baylor University’s Institute for Oral History provide a road map for examining traditional best practices and procedures in this remote environment while maintaining the high standards oral historians hold dear. The four authors present the range of oral history practice—project design, ethical considerations, project management, interviewing, technology, and preservation. At the core oral historians are concerned with how to do remote oral history well. This roundtable will also facilitate conversation to examine the changed dynamics and new considerations of moving from face-to-face projects to distance work. The roundtable will begin with introductions, a short summary of each author's contribution to the book and the research conducted, and then will shift to a moderated conversation with attendees about the changes and challenges they have faced while adjusting and adapting to conducting remote oral histories. This roundtable will also provide space for questions about the content and process of creation of this book.