oral history interview essay example

The Writing Center • University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Oral History

What this handout is about.

This handout will help you figure out how to use oral histories in essays. It will give you suggestions for how to prepare for and conduct oral history interviews and help you determine, based on your context and purpose, how to integrate raw material into your essay.

Introduction

If we aren’t experts on a particular time or culture, our knowledge of it is often limited to major events and sweeping trends. This doesn’t necessarily help us understand the everyday experience of life in the past or in another culture. However, we do know a great deal about everyday experience in our own time and culture, and a large part of that knowledge comes not from textbooks but from talking to others. We learn about the histories of our families through conversation with those who remember them and about what various cultures value by observing their celebrations and listening to their music, among other things. So if you want to learn about another culture, country, era, etc., why not use a version of this strategy and talk to people who are or were part of it about their experiences and memories?

Oral history involves interviewing a person or group to get an inside perspective into what it was like to live in a particular time or is like to live as the member of a particular group within a society. Interviewing a group of people can create a picture of that experience, and a large project of this kind (such as UNC’s Southern Oral History Project) can be a way of preserving a piece of history. When we interview one person, we gain knowledge of an individual’s experiences, which may or may not be typical of their time and culture. We can also learn more about the experiences of groups from all sections of society, including the ones whose experience is not always thoroughly known or well documented, such as the working class, ethnic or religious minorities, or women.

When professors use oral history projects in classes, they usually ask you to interview only one or two people. The interview stage of the process requires effective question-making and interviewing skills. Usually, the project consists of taking raw material from an interview and shaping it into an essay. This step requires you to make some decisions about how you want to present the material and analytical skill to help you interpret what you learn.

Who uses oral history projects and why

Fields in which you might be assigned an oral history paper include history, anthropology, and other disciplines that study the experiences of specific social groups such as women or ethnic groups. The goals of these fields affect the ways they use this kind of project:

History : Historians use evidence to understand the experiences of people in the past. Oral history can be a valuable source of evidence for understanding the experiences of individuals or groups within a certain historical period. Oral testimony cannot replace analysis of traditional historical materials (official documents, letters, newspapers, secondary sources, etc.). It can, however, reveal the role of individuals in shaping the past and/or how larger trends impacted the individual. When an oral history essay places the experiences of an individual within the context of a historical period, it can help illuminate both the individual’s experience and the historical period.
Folklore : Folklorists study culture as it is expressed in everyday life and often use oral history projects to gather materials to preserve and study. Interviewing individuals is one of the primary means of accessing folklore; for example, folklorists use oral histories to learn about a culture’s musical traditions or festivals.
Anthropology : An archeologist might use oral history to learn more about the lifeways of peoples who have living descendants or to locate sites for archeological excavation. A cultural anthropologist might use oral history as a way to understand how individuals think of themselves in relation to the rest of the world. This technique can help anthropologists understand how culture shapes individuals either consciously or unconsciously, on the one hand, and the ways that individuals contribute to the production of culture, on the other hand.

Fields that study marginalized social groups (such as women, African-Americans, Latino/as): In these fields, conducting and analyzing an interview is a way of uncovering experience that might be underrepresented in mainstream culture. Dominant cultures have a tendency not to notice or acknowledge the experiences of certain subgroups, viewing them as peripheral rather than central—in other words, marginalizing them. Academic fields have emerged to explore the experiences of marginalized groups, and these fields tend to value experiential knowledge. Oral history projects can be a way of accessing such knowledge.

Preparing for the interview

Before the interview, familiarize yourself with the history and characteristics of the culture your interviewee is from. That way, you’ll have a context for what you learn.

Some interviews may be fairly unstructured, with only general guidance from you. For instance, you may just choose some topics to discuss, allowing the interviewee to lead the way. This is appropriate when your goal is relatively broad, such as the preservation of the person’s voice, memories, and perspective, as opposed to using the interview to construct a focused argument. Some interviews, especially those in undergraduate course assignments, are more highly structured and take the shape of a list of questions and responses. This is especially useful when you hope to use the raw material of the interview to make a particular point or are looking to address very focused issues. If you are planning a more structured interview, prepare a list of questions, including some basic ones about aspects of the person’s identity (such as age, level of education, and occupation). In devising your questions, consider the interviewee’s cultural context. Think about what kinds of issues would be most helpful for you to learn about. For instance, learning how the person felt about major life events might help you understand how your interviewee sees their life as a whole. Questions about what it was actually like to live through segregation or the Vietnam War might give you a new perspective on a historical time period. As you ask your questions, work from your list, but be ready to ask follow-up questions in case you don’t understand the response or want to know more. A response to one of your questions may also trigger curiosity about some other issue, so it’s good to be ready to follow whatever path seems most promising. Include open-ended questions, especially “how” and “why” questions, as they will probably yield the richest raw material for your essay; asking yes/no questions is okay for gathering factual information. Ask for examples when you think it would help you (and the readers of your essay) understand the person’s perspective.

Conducting the interview

To conduct the interviewing process in an ethical way, ask the person’s permission to use their comments in your essay; written consent is ideal so you have a record of it. If you are recording a phone conversation, the interviewee’s written consent is required by law. Ask if the interviewee would prefer that you not use their actual name.

Tape record the interview if possible. If you try to work only from notes, you won’t have an exact record of the person’s comments and could end up distorting their meaning. Test your tape recorder, digital voice recorder, or videocamera ahead of time and bring extra batteries if necessary. If you’re recording, try to minimize background noise. In any interview setting, try to select an environment free from distractions, so that both you and the interviewee will be able to concentrate. Choose a spot where you will both feel comfortable. Silence will feel awkward at first, but give your interviewee a chance to think. Don’t move on too quickly just because there is a bit of a pause. Watch for signs of fatigue. If the person you’re interviewing begins to seem tired, take a break or set up another time to finish the interview. Treat the person you’re interviewing with respect, regardless of your own attitudes and opinions. Making assumptions about the person may damage trust and skew the essay you write.

Transcribing oral histories

Sometimes, you may be asked to transcribe your oral history interview or part of it. Transcription is the process of taking a sound file and translating it to text; it creates a written transcript of an oral conversation. One of the goals of transcribing interviews is to give readers a sense of the interview—how was it formatted, was it formal or informal, did the interviewer ask a lot of questions or did the interview subject do most of the talking with just a few prompts, what language and speaking style did the participants use?

A transcript of an oral history interview is, in the words of one style guide, “at best an imperfect representation of an oral interview. The transcriber’s most important task is to render as close a replica to the actual event as possible. Accuracy, not speed, is the transcriber’s goal” (Baylor Style Guide). Therefore, the transcript should reflect, as closely as possible, the words, speech patterns, and thought patterns of the interview subject. Their word choice, grammar, and ideas should be transcribed as accurately as possible. It’s not generally necessary, though, to reproduce a dialect or accent, unless you have specific training in doing so. The same style guide says, “Oral history is not an exercise in literary composition; the transcriber should avoid value judgments about the grammar or vocabulary of an interviewee.”

Transcribing can be a long and very detailed process. It will be easiest if you take detailed notes during the interview about the different questions, topics, and themes that you discuss. Write down any memorable phrases or ideas, so you have some markers for different points in the interview. You will need to listen to the entire portion of the interview to be transcribed several times. Many people find it helpful to listen all the way through a section once, then again, transcribing as much as possible, then a third (or fourth, or fifth!) time in order to fill in all the holes. At the end of this handout, you will find some websites that detail how to transcribe an oral history interview.

When you have a complete transcript, it is common practice to return it to the interviewee for editing—these changes can be noted in various ways or integrated into the document. Interviewees may need to correct things like dates, names, or places. Or they may want to provide more elaboration or clarification on a subject. Though this is standard practice for professional historians, your instructor may or may not expect you to do this.

Turning the raw material into an essay

The process you use will depend on what you want your essay to do. If, for instance, you want your essay merely to showcase an individual’s thoughts on a time or subject, you will simply need to frame the comments of the interviewee and shape them into a narrative. If, on the other hand, your intention is to interpret the interviewee’s comments, using them as evidence for an argument, you will need to make a strong argument while still letting the interviewee’s experience and insights come through. Your essay might use the interviewee’s comments to advance an alternate interpretation of a historical time or culture, confirm a commonly held characterization, or enrich an existing view.

Because oral history papers can vary a great deal according to their aims, make sure to develop a clear sense of your purpose. The assignment itself may specify quite clearly what kind of an oral history project you may do or leave many of the choices up to you. In either case, figuring out what you want your essay to accomplish will help you make definitive decisions about how to write it.

Decisions you’ll need to make about your project

First, determine the overall purpose of your essay. What would you like your essay to do?

A . Transcribe the comments of the individual.

B . Present the experiences and/or perspective of the individual.

C . Place the individual’s experiences and/or perspective within a larger historical or social context.

D . Use the individual’s experiences and/or perspective to make an argument about a larger historical or social context.

(C and D are especially common in undergraduate assignments of this type, but every assignment is different.)

Based on your answer to the above question, choose which section of this handout you’d like to read. If you’re not certain what you’d like your essay to do, read through all of the following sections to get a better sense of what your essay might include.

If you answered A., that you want your essay to transcribe the comments of the individual, consider the following questions and responses

What should you say about the interviewee’s comments?

Introduce the individual, explain the circumstances of the interview, and then literally transcribe your questions and their responses.

How should you structure your essay?

Present the questions and responses in the order you asked the questions. You may also include an introduction that briefly describes the person.

How should you present quotes and use paraphrases?

Transcribe the questions and responses so that paraphrases won’t be necessary. A question and answer format is a clear way to present a transcription (see the “examples” section at the end of this handout).

Should you read and/or incorporate secondary sources?

Whether or not you need to use secondary sources is partially a matter of what the assignment calls for. Secondary sources about the cultural context might help you think of your questions, but you won’t need to include them in your transcription of the responses.

Here is an example of how you might handle one of your interviewee’s comments within the body of the essay. Suppose that your paper is for a women’s studies project in which your instructor has asked you to interview a female family member; you have chosen to interview your grandmother, Lucretia. Suppose that you asked the following question: “How free did you feel in terms of choosing your jobs? If you felt limited, why do you think that might have been?”

If you want your essay to transcribe the interview, you will just present the questions and answers:

[Your name]: How free did you feel in terms of choosing your jobs? If you felt limited, why do you think that might have been? Lucretia: I have always been good at organizing things and getting along with people, so that made it easy for me to find receptionist jobs. But in those times, you didn’t see women executives. That was just how things were; people simply didn’t consider women for those jobs.

If you answered B., that you want your essay to present the experiences and/or perspective of the individual, consider the following questions and responses

Introduce the individual and outline the topics that the interview explored. Then use these topics to help you decide whether you want to organize the essay by the sequence of your questions or by topics that emerged as you reviewed your notes. You may frame the interviewee’s comments by providing transitions and a conclusion that reiterates the central point(s) that the interview revealed.

Your introduction should say a few things about who the person is and name some of the recurring themes or issues to prepare the reader to notice those in the body of the essay. The body of the essay should organize the interviewee’s comments, for instance chronologically or topically, and provide bridges (transitions) between sections.

Frame your quotes will phrases like “Sue Ellen explained . . .” or “Horatio’s view on plum trees is that . . .”; if you use paraphrases, be careful not to change their implications or lose their intent, since your goal is to present rather than interpret. For this approach as well as the next, our handout on quotations might be helpful.

If your assignment asks you to present (“B”) the results in essay form, you will integrate the questions and answers into your text, although sometimes you may find it easier to just paraphrase the question:

While Lucretia does feel that her occupational life offered her some opportunities, she describes feeling a sense of limitation, at least in retrospect: “I have always been good at organizing things and getting along with people, so that made it easy for me to find receptionist jobs. But in those times, you didn’t see women executives. That was just how things were; people simply didn’t consider women for those jobs.”

If you answered C., that you want your essay to place the individual’s experiences and/or perspective within a larger historical or social context, consider the following questions and responses

Analyze the responses to your questions and what they illustrate about their historical or social context. You might consider how your interviewee’s identity (their class, gender, and ethnicity, for instance) relates to the nature of the interviewee’s experience or perspective. For this kind of essay, you’ll need an analytical thesis statement (see our handout on thesis statements ), a plan for how to organize the subtopics that demonstrate your thesis, analysis/interpretation of the interviewee’s comments, and a conclusion that draws your analysis together.

Your introduction should contain and explain a thesis statement that makes a claim about the nature of the historical or social context. Organizing the body paragraphs by topic may be an effective way of explaining how the individual’s experiences fit into the broader historical or social context.

You’ll provide framing phrases as in the previous case, but you’ll also need to include your explanation of the significance of the quotes. A good general guideline is to include at least as much explanation of the quote as the quote is long. Paraphrases are helpful when you need just the content of the comment to make your point—that is, when the language the interviewee uses is not the primary issue. If you’re writing an analytical or argumentative essay, a mixture of paraphrases and quotes will probably serve your purpose best.

Whether or not you need to use secondary sources is partially a matter of what the assignment calls for. But if the assignment doesn’t specify, you’ll probably need to read and perhaps refer explicitly to some secondary sources so that you will have the necessary evidence to create a picture of the broader historical or social context.

If your assignment asks you to place the responses in their social context, you will need to integrate the quotes into text, paired with either the questions themselves or paraphrases, along with some analysis of how the individual’s experiences fit into their social context. You may even include some references to secondary sources, depending on the assignment and your own sense of whether they would strengthen your analysis:

Lucretia describes feeling limited in terms of her occupational life: “I have always been good at organizing things and getting along with people, so that made it easy for me to find receptionist jobs. But in those times, you didn’t see women executives. That was just how things were; people simply didn’t consider women for those jobs.” Her account reveals a sense of how fixed gender roles were in the workplace and seems fairly typical for the time and place, as feminist historian Tammy Ixplox’s scholarship suggests (Ixplox 39).

If you answered D., that you want your essay to use the individual’s experiences and/or perspective to make an argument about a larger historical or social context, consider the following questions and responses

Use the interviewee’s comments as evidence for an argument you want to make about a particular historical or social context. For instance, you might want to argue that working-class women’s experience in 1950s America does not necessarily fit with popularly-held notions of the fifties housewife. Or you might want to show how racism affected one African-American man’s everyday life to demonstrate how insidious racism can be. For these kinds of essays, you may need some supporting research to get a better sense of the historical and social context, so you’ll understand how the individual’s experience relates to broader cultural trends and phenomena. In terms of what the essay will look like, you’ll need a thesis that makes a claim, an organizational plan that reflects the main points you think will best support that thesis, lots of explanation of how the interviewee’s comments illustrate the thesis, and a conclusion that draws your argument together.

You’ll need an introduction with a strong, interpretive thesis statement that the body of the essay explains and demonstrates. The interviewee’s comments will function as evidence for your argument, so each body paragraph should correspond to a point in your argument.

You’ll provide framing phrases as in the previous case, but you’ll also need to include your explanation of the significance of the quotes. A good rule of thumb is to include at least as much explanation of the quote as the quote is long. Paraphrases are helpful when you need just the content of the comment to make your point—that is, when the language the interviewee uses is not the primary issue. If you’re writing an analytical or argumentative essay, a mixture of paraphrases and quotes will probably serve your purpose best.

Whether or not you need to use secondary sources is partially a matter of what the assignment calls for. But if the assignment doesn’t specify, you’ll probably need to read and incorporate some secondary sources to complement or provide a counterpoint to the interviewee’s comments and to support your claims about the larger historical or social context.

If your assignment asks you to make an argument, for example, about how the interviewee’s responses reflect gender issues and roles, you will need to integrate the quotes into your text as evidence for your argument about gender roles, perhaps with reference to secondary sources if appropriate:

Lucretia’s experiences reveal gender roles in the workplace, in which men tended to fill the executive positions and women the less prestigious ones. She describes feeling limited in terms of her occupational life: “I have always been good at organizing things and getting along with people, so that made it easy for me to find receptionist jobs. But in those times, you didn’t see women executives. That was just how things were; people simply didn’t consider women for those jobs.” In her experience, no one questioned these roles, which reveals how ingrained and even internalized social expectations for men and women were at the time. This phenomenon is consistent with feminist historian Tammy Ixplox’s scholarship on this cultural context (Ixplox 39).

Works consulted

We consulted these works while writing this handout. This is not a comprehensive list of resources on the handout’s topic, and we encourage you to do your own research to find additional publications. Please do not use this list as a model for the format of your own reference list, as it may not match the citation style you are using. For guidance on formatting citations, please see the UNC Libraries citation tutorial . We revise these tips periodically and welcome feedback.

Baylor University. n.d. “Transcribing Style Guide.” Institute for Oral History. Accessed June 24, 2019. https://www.baylor.edu/oralhistory/index.php?id=931752 .

Library of Congress. n.d. “Indexing and Transcribing Your Interviews.” Veterans History Project. Last updated August 2020. http://www.loc.gov/vets/transcribe.html .

Moyer, Judith. 1993. “Step-by-Step Guide to Oral History.” DoHistory . Harvard University. http://dohistory.org/on_your_own/toolkit/oralHistory.html .

Shopes, Linda. 2002. “Making Sense of Oral History.” History Matters: The US Survey Course on the Web. February 2002. http://historymatters.gmu.edu/mse/oral/ .

You may reproduce it for non-commercial use if you use the entire handout and attribute the source: The Writing Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

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Oral History Interview Project

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Published: Mar 16, 2024

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Oral History Toolkit

Oral History Toolkit Introduction

Background Research

Interview equipment, developing interview questions, legal and ethical considerations.

Stage 2: The Interview
Stage 3: Post-Interview

Preparing for an oral history interview is perhaps the most important step in the oral history process. Once you have decided upon a topic or event in history, you will need to locate a narrator (also called the interviewee) whose experiences are relevant to your topic. Quality research can create rapport with the narrator and hone interview questions that inspire storytelling. You should read both primary and secondary sources related to the era, topic, or theme of your interview.

According to the Oral History Association, "Oral history interviews seek an in-depth account of personal experience and reflections, with sufficient time allowed for the narrators to give their story the fullness they desire. The content of oral history interviews is grounded in reflections on the past as opposed to commentary on purely contemporary events" ( Oral History Association ).

Preparing for an oral history interview typically involves the following components, which are explained in more detail in the sections below:

Background research of both the narrator and the event or topic
Reserve or obtain interview equipment
Develop a set of questions to guide or frame the interview
Consider the legal and ethical implications of the oral history project

To be prepared for the interview, conduct careful research that is both subject-focused and that contextualizes your narrator within the circumstances of the event or time period you are studying. To begin with you will need to know what you are trying to learn. Come up with a concise sentence or two that summarizes your project and that will help you explain to potential narrators what you hope to accomplish.

Doing background research requires considering information that already exists on your research topic. For example, if you wanted to learn more about a politician, you might want to consider campaign literature (including pins, brochures, posters, and so on); political documents; and perhaps other biographies or interviews that already exist. Likewise, if your focus is on a particular event or time period in history, you will want to consult newspaper accounts, perhaps economic data, any records pertaining to the event you are studying. As another example, if you are using oral history to collect and preserve your family history, you may want to draw from scrapbooks, photographs, family heirlooms, diaries, etc.

Many primary sources and archived interviews are available at The Claremont Colleges Library . See the "Resources" tab on the navigation menu for links to the oral history collections at the Honnold/Mudd Special Collections and links to the oral history archives of The Claremont Colleges Digital Library.

Questions that can help you prepare for your interview may include:

Why am I interviewing this person?
What do I hope to learn?
What events or topics do I want to document?
How will I use the interview data to illustrate a point or further my argument?

An important step in the interview process is a non-recorded pre-interview meeting. This step occurs after you have found an appropriate narrator who has agreed to work with you. The purpose of the non-recorded pre-interview meeting is to establish report and to learn as much as you can before the formal interview. Talking informally with your narrator can help you decide what questions to ask during the interview and provides the narrator with important information about the interview purpose and process. This pre-interview meeting can be done over the phone or email, but in person is best. Things you will want to let your interviewee know before the interview might include:

The purpose of the interview
How you will use the interview data
Approximate length of interview and where you will meet (this is a good time to schedule the interview)
Where the interview and accompanying materials will be stored and who will have access to these records.

Renting Equipment: If you are using equipment from your in department or institution, be sure to reserve it early enough to use it twice: once to become familiar with the equipment, and then for the interview itself. Equipment rental tends to be for a very short period (1 day or a certain number of hours) and the equipment will be in great demand if you are doing your oral history project as a class assignment.

Choosing the appropriate equipment for your purpose and budget is also an important part of preparing for your interview. Considerations should not only include your purposes, but also the long-range issues of access and preservation.

Basic Equipment Checklist:

digital recorder
1 or 2 external microphones
A minimum of 4GB storage device

Digital Recorders : The Claremont Colleges Library requires that audio recordings be recorded in .WAV file format with a minimum quality of 44.1khz 16 bit (CD quality) . The better the quality, the better the recording will be for archival purposes. Thus, in considering the recording equipment you can rent, use, or purchase, be sure the recorder will be durable and reliable. It is possible to use your computer or mobile device, but you want to ensure that recordings are of sufficient quality and format.

Note : If you are thinking about using a video recording device, you may want to refer to Oral History in the Digital Age (see the "Ask Doug" resource).

External Microphones : Good microphones are necessary for clear sound. Lapel microphones are ideal as they can eliminate much of the background noises. You may wish to have one for your interviewee and one for yourself, or you may wish to use one microphone positioned evenly between you both during the interview. Even if you use your computer or mobile device, you will want to use an external mic.

Minimum of 4GB Storage : Recording at the highest quality settings of your recorder will take up more file space, so be sure to have enough storage. As an example, 4GB of storage will hold approximately 2 - 6 hours of interview depending on your quality settings. Create multiple back-up copies and store them in different locations (i.e. cloud storage, a thumb drive, and your computer hard drive).

► Be sure to familiarize yourself with your equipment before the interview!

There are a number of excellent resources to aid you in developing your questions, some of which are posted on the "Resources" page of this guide. Briefly, you will want to develop two types of questions: those that obtain factual information about your narrator/interviewee, and questions that will assist your narrator/interviewee in remembering particular events or circumstances.

Biographical Data : Although you likely obtained much of the biographical information about your narrator/interviewee during the pre-interview meeting, it is standard practice to ask some of these questions at the beginning so that your narrator/interviewee can get comfortable with the interview process and equipment. Remember to be sensitive to your narrator's needs; some people are not comfortable disclosing age or other personal information.

► You may be interested in the Narrator/Interviewer Fact Form and/or a more detailed Life Story Form.

Open Questions : As the interview progresses your questions may become more concrete and may address more sensitive information. These typically include open questions—meaning that the questions cannot be answered by simply yes or no, or other finite response. Open questions probe for information and seek to trigger stories and memories from your narrator/interviewee. Examples include the typical journalistic what, where, when, who, and how. But they will also include phrases such as:

Questions are not meant to be followed rigidly; they are a jumping off point for your narrator's stories and memories. Part of the value of Oral Histories is that stories often wander off topic to memories we would not have known to ask about and that greatly enrich the overall project.

Note: Objects and photographs can also help to trigger memories, so invite your narrator/interviewee to bring any materials that might help them to explain or describe events. Your narrator/interviewee may even wish to donate such materials to be part of the oral history archive established for your project.

Beginning in 2018, the federal guidelines for Institutional Review Boards (IRB) updated "scholarly and journalistic pursuits" as no longer needing IRB approval. The tab for "IRB" listed on the navigation menu provides links and policy overviews. It is a good idea to become familiar with campus and departmental policies. Other legal and ethical considerations may involve a number of aspects of your project, including:

meeting locations
personal boundaries
emotional reactions
anonymity requests
dissemination and access

Location : Meeting locations should be safe and comfortable for both parties. You may be able to reserve a conference or other room at your institution or your interviewee may wish to interview at his or her home. Wherever you meet, it's a good idea to be sure someone else knows your location.

Boundaries : Respecting narrator rights and boundaries means understanding that your interviewee may choose to withhold information, may change his or her mind about the interview or even allowing dissemination after they have agreed to do so. You will need to be prepared to honor any requests your narrator makes, including asking to remain anonymous . Remeber to honor these requests in the transcript and write-up of the interview as well.

Emotion : It is not unusual for you or the narrator to be emotionally moved by the interviewee's stories and memories. If appropriate, temporarily stop the recording and allow your interviewee to regain composure. Perhaps your narrator will want a change of subject. Check in with your narrator and ensure that he or she is comfortable continuing with the interview at that time. You may need to reschedule.

Dissemination and Access: Because one of the primary objectives of oral history is making the information available to the public, you will want discuss this aspect of the project with your interviewee beforehand, and again during the interview. The narrator retains all rights to their interviews until and unless they transfer those rights. You may wish to offer your narrator an opportunity to discuss your transcript and/or project draft and they may wish to receive a copy of your final project.

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: Dec 19, 2023 4:10 PM
URL: https://libguides.libraries.claremont.edu/ohtoolkit

Research Guides

Oral History Project Guide: The Interview

Designing the Project

The Interview

After the Interview
Rights Management
Technical Considerations
Project Lifecycle

Background Research

Prepare for the interview by:

draft a short biographical introduction of your interview subject;
do background research on the time period or event you want to explore;
make a list of open ended questions to ask during the interview;
select the location of the interview;
prepare any recording devices you plan to use for the interview;
ensure you have enough storage space for the recording;
if using batteries, take extras in case you need them;
have a backup plan if something goes wrong.

Release Forms

Everyone who participates in the interview has an investment in the project: the interviewer, the interviewee, sound or audio managers or assistants, and others who help complete the project. It is very important to ensure everyone understands their role in the project. A release form, signed by all parties, clarifies the responsibility and rights of everyone involved. Such a form may include:

the name and contact information of the person signing the form;
a description of the project;
any uses which will be made of the interview;
any restrictions on the use of project material;
copyright assignment (to the interviewer, or reserved by the interviewee);
and any compensation to be received, if any.

Please see this sample release form used for the Vandy Goes to War project.

set a time and place for the interview ( a quiet room if possible);
arrange transportation or parking space for your interview subject and anyone who may accompany them;
share a copy of the questions you will ask and ask if there's anything you should add to the list;
ask for a list of people names and/or place names that will be discussed and verify correct spellings;
schedule audio or videographer assistants, if applicable;
if there are any personal copies of photographs, records, or memorabilia that the interviewee would like to share with the project, make arrangements to have them copied or digitized in time for the interview.

Conducting the Interview

During the interview:

ask the participant to sign the project release form, and provide them with a copy for their records;
begin the interview with a brief introduction of the person and the subject of the interview;
if the interview is lengthy consider splitting it into 2 or 3 parts-- each with a specific focus;
Take us through the day of January 17, 1979;
Who were the key people in the Peabody merger and how are they remembered?
What was it like at Vanderbilt when the war (World War II) ended? What kind of mood and atmosphere was there?
stop at intervals to ask if the participants (including any assistants) would like to take a break;
be sure to thank all participants for contributing to the project as you wind up.
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Next: After the Interview >>
Last Updated: Jul 31, 2023 1:10 PM
URL: https://researchguides.library.vanderbilt.edu/oralhistory

Guide to Conducting Oral History Interviews (Comprehensive)

Categories: Research for Storytelling
Tags: featured , Oral history interviews

A complete guide for conducting oral history interviews for storytelling.

Of all the various opportunities I have to research and write narratives, the most important and productive research was when I conducted oral history interviews. When we talk about the oral history interview, we closely associate the topic with writing individual and family narratives. In this “Complete Guide for Conducting Oral History Interviews for Writing Narratives,” I will present the oral Interview and oral history as one topic under the umbrella of oral history.

The difference between writing mediocre and a great narrative is planning, researching, and carefully stitching the memories and artifacts into a cohesive blend of resources to tell the story that will inspire generations to come.

In the beginning. Shortly after my mother’s passing 25 years ago, I began the process of conducting interviews with her (Mary’s) immediate family, friends, and others who knew her. As time continued, I expanded the oral history research to include my mother’s and father’s immediate and extended family. When I completed the task 4 years later, I had gathered information spanning 100-plus years of memory, 160+ hours of interviewing, have received physical or digital copies of thousands of family images, writings, and artifacts related to those interviews. Throughout this guide, I will refer to some of my experiences in conducting these oral history interviews.

This guide is based on my personal and professional experience in interviewing hundreds of people and writing thousands of narratives over the last several decades. The following are the topics that will be covered in this guide:

What are Oral History Interviews?
What I Learned in the First Ten Oral History Interviews
How to Begin Preparing for the Oral History Interview
Oral History Interview Considerations
How to Set-up the Oral History Interview
How to Correct Oral History Recording Noise Problems
Getting Ready for the Oral History Interview
How to Conduct an Oral History Interview
Use Open-Ended Questions in Oral History Interviews
How to Get the Best Answers in Oral History Interviews
How to Take Care of Recorded Oral History Interview
Documenting Oral History Interview and Narrative

Other resources to consider include:

Complete Guide to Writing A Personal Narrative
7,500-plus Questions About Life to Ask People When Writing Narratives

Every life is important and unique. It’s about the people known, the places visited, the decisions made, the opportunities lost or gained, and the spiritual, physical, and mental vitality and folly. If your life is essential to you for no other reason, and that is reason enough to write a personal narrative.

Please do not underestimate your value and how essential your narrative will be to you and those who will read it. So often, I have heard people say, “I wish that my grandparents had written a personal narrative/history,”? We have many questions about those who have gone before us. The narrative you write will be among the most prized possessions you give to others.

Return to list of topics for Complete Guide for Conducting Oral History Interviews.

1.What Are Oral History Interviews?

The oral history interview is the collection and recording of personal memoirs as historical documentation. It emphasizes the significance of the human experience.

Oral history interviews are not the best method for obtaining factual data—such as specific dates, places, or times—because people rarely remember such detail accurately. Instead, you will need to use more traditional historical research methods—courthouse records, club minutes, newspaper accounts, and so forth—to help fill in these gaps.

Oral history interviews are the best method to get an idea of what happened, what those times meant to people, and how it felt to be a part of that time.

Oral history interviews are great for capturing eyewitness accounts and reminiscences about events and experiences that occurred during the lifetime of the person being interviewed and for gathering narratives passed down verbally from generation to generation beyond any individual’s lifetime. This includes stories, songs, sayings, memorized speeches, and traditional accounts of past events.

Oral histories provide an added dimension to historical research. An oral history project can aid your research in the following ways:

Foster appreciation for little-known or rapidly vanishing ways of life.
Verify the historical nature of events that traditional methods of historical research cannot determine.
Correct stereotypical images of life, ways, and people.
Recover and preserve essential aspects of a human experience that would otherwise go undocumented.

What are the types of oral history interviews?

There are four basic types of oral history interviews. They include:

Life histories. These are oral interviews with individuals about their backgrounds from childhood to adulthood. Most of these oral interviews follow a chronology in time. Life histories provide an opportunity to discuss various subjects based on the interviewer’s interests and the interviewee’s remembered experiences and perspectives. They are ideal for writing narratives and learning about family.

Topical histories. These oral interviews are often used for focused studies of particular events, eras, or organizations. Examples include discussing the Depression Era in the local county/community or about an event like a flood, mudslide, or storm that devastated a community. An oral study about World War II in a specific locale, for example, might include interviews about military involvement, civil defense preparedness, the home front, rationing, bond and scrap metal drives, war industries, and myriad related topics.

Thematic histories. These studies focus on broad patterns and concepts. These themes could include love, conflict, hope, religion, education, competition, success, or art. Thematic oral histories are not common, but they present opportunities worth considering.

Histories to document specific artifacts or sites. Oral history interviews may be used, for example, to explain items within a museum collection— how to churn butter, how to operate a Farmall F-12 tractor, how to use a Victrola, how to dress for travel in the 1940s. Another method is to have a subject orally document the history of an individual home, a particular street, an old schoolhouse, a vacant field or an overgrown cotton patch.

2. What I Learned in the First Ten Oral History Interviews

During my mother’s funeral and memorial services, I had many people tell me about their experiences with Mary as a youth, as an adult, and at work. They told me about her service and reshared her thoughts and pride for my siblings and me. I longed to know more about my mother. I realized that I knew very little about my mother. I felt a genuine sorrow and emptiness for wanting to learn more about my mother.

Whenever I asked Mom (Mary Schreiber) about her life while living, she replied that it was hard and nothing more needed to be said. Because of my need and desire to learn about my mother, I awkwardly yet earnestly began reaching out to people my mother knew to see if they would allow me to interview them about my mother. Every person gladly agreed. So within three months, I began conducting oral history interviews. The journey started with my conducting oral interviews with family, friends, co-workers, and my mother’s acquaintances. I expanded the project also to include discussions related to my father. Over six years, I conducted over 160 hours of oral history interviews.

The first ten oral history interviews were more than people simply answering my questions. They were individuals who had respect, love, and insight into Mary as a mother, friend, and sister. I was discovering the Mary Schreiber I was never privileged to know thoroughly. I loved my mother before, but I loved her even more following the interviews. This group of ten people held the keys to every stage of my mother’s life. They answered my questions honestly, directly, and without any reservation. As a result of the interviews, I learned about the following aspects of my mother’s life:

Cherished experiences they shared with Mary
Traits they admired about Mary
Innermost thoughts Mary shared with them about her life and family
Her dreams that were dashed by choices in marriage
Dark, troublesome times of pain and sorrow that was triumphantly overcome
My heritage and roles of progenitors in preparing a path for me
Family rifts that were three generations deep
Identification of photos and other artifacts
Individuals and families from my heritage whom I should learn more about
“Skeletons” that were long since buried
Precious artifacts (photos, cards, letters, scrapbooks, journals) that were given to me to keep or to scan
Artifacts that existed and where I could find them

There were two important takeaways from those first ten oral interviews for anyone just starting to conduct oral history interviews about individuals or family members. They include:

Conduct oral history interviews with immediate family members

Take time to interview and compare your memories with those who have direct knowledge about the person. This can include siblings, parents, cousins, grandparents, and others. Oral history is about people, who they were, and the stories of their lives. People often share that they want to learn more about individuals and their family heritage.

I will respond with questions like, “What is keeping you from talking to your family?” The replies vary from

I don’t know how or where to start.
I don’t get along with some of my family.
I don’t have time.
I will wait till I am retired.

I try to emphasize by sharing that those were my feelings exactly. Then I briefly share my experience with the death of my mother and my need to know more. I conclude by gently encouraging them not to wait until after a relative passes on to find information or conduct oral histories. Someone in the family has excellent information. People will and want to talk to you. Because you are willing to take the effort and ask questions, people will go out of their way to help answer your questions and share information and artifacts (e.g., photographs, letters, scrapbooks, journals, video, and more) related to your quest. Rest assured that your family will answer your questions and insights that will be invaluable to writing a narrative, story, or memoir.

Oral interviews provide opportunities to locate family records

Oral interviews provide opportunities to locate, identify, catalog, and preserve artifacts significant to the family and why those items are essential. Artifacts can include heirlooms (such as furniture, small collectibles, and photographs), manuscript materials (diaries, letters, and family bibles), and copies of public records (certificates of birth, marriage, death, land, patents, and wills.)

Of the more than 60,000 artifacts I have gathered relating to my mother and father and their ancestral lines, 75 percent have come from interviews with family. Once I was made aware of available information, I was permitted to scan or photograph the artifacts. In several instances, I was given the life-long research of the person I was interviewing because I had an interest shared by anyone else.

3. How to Begin Preparing for the Oral History Interview

It is natural to want to rush out and start the interview process, but no project should begin without some essential investigation of available resources. I found that by gathering and organizing material, I was able to gain an excellent insight into which direction I should go and what questions I needed to ask. As you prepare, you may need to review other artifacts, such as old newspapers, county histories, archival records, cemeteries, and photographs.

Who should I include when writing an individual or family narrative?

Include family and friends of the person whose narrative you are writing. Involving family and friends in writing a personal, individual or family narrative will make the process more accessible (and the result more interesting). Still, it will also help ensure that you have an audience of interested readers connected to the completed work. Start the process of involving family and friends by sending them a letter or email signed by the subject of the narrative, if available. These communications are most effective if, at a minimum, they accomplish the following:

Introduce the narrative writing project and explain the desired time frame for completion.
Share that you will be reaching out over the next several months to request and schedule time for an oral history interview.
Ask the recipients to collect photos, stories, and memorabilia that might be appropriate for use in the completed narrative.
Offer to pay for any copies and other costs they incur in assisting you.
Ask family members to contribute their favorite stories concerning the subject.
If writing a letter, include a self-addressed, padded envelope and “advance reimbursement” for the out-of-pocket costs they will incur in assisting you.

Who should I interview for the narrative?

Start by creating an acquaintance list. For Mary, my mother, I brainstormed a list of family, friends, and acquaintances who I knew. The list started with 20 names. This will grow over time. As I conducted interviews, I was introduced to new people with whom I should meet.

Who should I interview first? I organized Mary’s list of family, friends, and acquaintances into the following three groups:

Group One: Family and friends she spoke with often during the last five years of her life.
Group Two: Family, friends, and acquaintances appeared (in artifacts) at critical moments in her life (for example, bridesmaids at her wedding).
Group Three : Family, friends, and acquaintances in everyday activities with her, such as a friend’s birthday or a group picture in the cafeteria.

I began with Group One, which consisted of ten people. I prepared for the interviews by developing a few general, broad questions that would help uncover information about each period of my mother’s life and call each person to set up the Interview.

4. Oral History Interview Considerations

Before I get into the actual details about how to set up and conduct oral history interviews, I would like to address essential choices such as

Where to Conduct the Interview
Type of equipment to consider and use

How many people should I interview at a time?

When you have an option, choose to interview the person in their own home. It is by far the best option, as the interviewee will be much more relaxed. A one-on-one interview is best. Privacy encourages an atmosphere of trust and honesty. A third person present, even a close partner, can inhibit and influence the free discussion.

Should I audio record or video record an oral history interview?

I would say that 85% of my interviews are done with audio recordings. When possible, I like to use both the audio recorder and video for interviews. However, the choice may not be yours. Sometimes, a person who is comfortably sitting and talking into a digital recorder will cringe at the thought of being on a video recording. If you’re uncertain, ask the interviewee. Whether using audio or video is more convenient for you, you’ll get the most from an interviewee who is comfortable with the environment. Getting their Interview is most important.

Do I need to record the oral history interview?

Because you can’t write down everything that someone tells you, it is a good idea to use an audio or video recorder. Over the years that I have conducted interviews, I have found that recording the Interview leaves me free to focus on the discussion. The only notes I took were thoughts that came during the discussion about further questions to ask or expand upon.

Your recordings will be unique historical documents that other people need to hear and understand quickly, so it’s worth getting a good-quality recording. When you record, you can focus on the Interview and worry about writing down notes and deciphering them later.

When should I conduct telephone oral history interviews? I did say that the interviews are in person. However, I would say that 50% of my oral history interviews have been over the phone. Why? I simply lived too far away from the interviewee.

Recording an Interview via Telephone. The FCC protects the privacy of telephone conversations by requiring notification before a recording device is used to record interstate (between different states) or international phone calls. I always ask the interviewee if I can record the call and have their answer on the recording. If they say, no, then I shut off the recording. Interstate or international telephone conversations may not be recorded unless the use of the recording device meets the following requirements:

Preceded by verbal or written consent of all parties to the telephone conversation; or
Preceded by a verbal notification that is recorded at the beginning, and as part of the call, by the recording party; or
Accompanied by an automatic tone warning device, sometimes called a “beep tone,” automatically produces a distinct signal that is repeated at regular intervals during the telephone conversation when the recording device is in use.

Also, a recording device can only be used to be physically connected to and disconnected from the telephone line or if it can be switched on and off.

What type of equipment do you need for a telephone oral history interview?

There are many ways and apps to use when recording a telephone call. I used the following equipment and resources for interviews because they have proven to the most reliable:

A digital-cassette player like the Sony ICD-UX570 Digital Voice Recorder.
A microphone that I could place under the earpad like the Olympus TP-8 Telephone Pick-up Microphone. The microphone is on the outside of the earplug.
Headset like the Plantronics Blackwire C3220 Headset for clear communication. My headset is the “Plantronics Voyager Focus UC Bluetooth USB B825 202652-01 Headset with Active Noise Cancelling” which I use also use for work.
List of questions for Interview.
Note pad to record thoughts, requests, and promises.
Computer to save my digital recording afterward.

Before each interview, I made sure the recorder worked and the lines were clear. If you haven’t used a recorder for interviews before, it is imperative that you practice recording and asking questions so you know your equipment and questions. That way, if you have any problems, you will have time to research and make corrections.

Can I use video conference software like Zoom for remote oral history interviews?

Yes. Zoom and other video conferencing software can be an excellent alternative to in-person and telephone-only oral history interviews. However, as the narrator/interviewer, you will need to have some essential practice on using the software and how to help the interviewee set up software on their end.

Pre-interview with Interviewee. Don’t assume you will set up an interview and jump on video conferencing software like Zoom and conduct a video oral history interview. While you may have had the experience of multiple interviews, your interviewee will not have had this experience. I suggest you set aside some time to become acquainted with the software and work out the technical aspects. Set up a pre-interview meeting with the interviewee. During the meeting, you can discuss how the interview will progress, set up both interviewer and interviewee computers, and make adjustments for sound, recording, camera, bandwidth speed of internet connection, and quiet room with little or no noise.

Choose a quiet, well-lit room . As the interviewer, you must find a quiet, well-lit, and relatively quiet room. The following is a checklist of considerations when recording.

Room smaller than 12 feet x 15 feet. Home office or den with carpet or plush services.
Make sure the room is well. I like having an incandescent or table lamp. I am looking to have a light that will show both sides of my face. Overhead lighting tends to leave dark shadows on a person’s face.
Ensure your computer or another camera you are using does not face the window or direct light source. Close the blinds or find another space.
Sound can bounce off walls and give you an echo effect. To reduce this effect, I like rooms with a mix of features like carpet, plush soft surfaces, plush/stuffed furnishings, bookcases, etc., which help to absorb sound.
Listen for noise such as fans, clocks, refrigerators, animal sounds like barking, outdoor sounds (close windows).
Close blinds or shield computer camera from direct sunlight.
Listen for other sounds coming from other rooms that can be heard and affect recording quality, such as flushing toilets, feet on the wood floor, fluorescent lighting, walking upstairs, talking, animal sounds like barking, clocks, fans, refrigerators, and more. Where possible, seek to minimize these sounds like asking the family to be in a different room while you are recording, using a different bathroom, not running the lawnmower, taking off shoes, and so forth.
Do not use artificial digital backgrounds. They look fake and can be irritating for the interview to watch.
Check your background. Less is more. By this, I mean, stay away from busy backgrounds. A bare wall is ok, but a painting or bookcase on the screen is better.

Recording equipment. When you are conducting a video interview, you need to be aware it takes more than simply opening your computer and turning on Zoom or video conferencing software. Consider the following:

Laptops with built-in cameras and microphones ideal. Tablets with the same configuration are also appropriate.
I like to use headphones with a built-in mic. The headphones help block out sound, help me contrate on the interview, and improve my voice with the mic. For example, a headset like the Plantronics Blackwire C3220 Headset for clear communication. My headset is the “Plantronics Voyager Focus UC Bluetooth USB B825 202652-01 Headset with Active Noise Cancelling,” which I use also use for work.
Listen for mic rub. This is where your mic rubs against clothing and delivers a scratchy sound. Avoid clothing with turtlenecks, large jewelry, scarfs, and large stiff collars.
Shut off all apps on your computer. Close as many tabs as possible from your browser.
A good quality Zoom or video conferencing call needs a minimum download/upload speed of 75/9 MBPS (megabytes per second). If you have connections, try turning off Wi-Fi devices in the home and minimize video streaming by others such as the TV, phones, etc. You can find your intent speed by doing a Google search on the term “Internet Speed Test.”
Beware of internet bandwidth. Bandwidth has to do with how much information your internet can upload and download. Many neighborhoods run off the same cable provider internet system. Reduces speed can cause an issue like stalled video images, breakup voice, etc. If this is happening, consider moving your interview to a time in the evening when there is less internet use. If you have fiber optic connections, you should be fine.
I use a digital record digital-cassette player like the Sony ICD-UX570 Digital Voice Recorder for backup and a microphone that I could place under the earpad like the Olympus TP-8 Telephone Pick-up Microphone. The microphone is on the outside of the earplug.

Interview. At the designated time you set up for the interview, join the zoom or video call you had set up. Before the interview, you should have had practice sessions of setting up the Zoom meeting, recording, etc. For more information about how to set up Zoom or other video conferencing software, do a Google search on terms like:

Zoom for oral history interviews
Zoom for interviews.
How to set up Zoom for interviews

As a best practice, I will do one or more of the following methods to make sure I have a backup of the oral history interview.

A digital-cassette player likes the Sony ICD-UX570 Digital Voice Recorder.
A microphone that I could place under the earpad like the Olympus TP-8 Telephone Pick-up Microphone. The microphone is on the outside of the earplug. See recording equipment.
On your laptop, use screen recording software to record the session.

What do I need to know about digital recorders?

Not all digital recorders are suitable for interviews. Avoid those that use proprietary software—for example, “personal recorders” that create files that can only be used with the manufacturer’s software. You are dependent on such software for listening to the sound and copying it. The typical price range for a digital recorder suitable for oral history is between $75 to $500. It comes down to the bells and whistles.

Minimum recording requirements for all digital media, including computers, are as follows:

44.1 kHz—minimum sampling rate
16 bit—minimum bit depth

Can I use an analog tape recorder for recording the oral history interview?

My personal choice would be NO. If I had this question in 2010, I would have said sure, go for it. In 2010, the recorders cost $50 to $100, those same microcassette recorders list for $300 to $600. I recently had to look for one such recorder to play 50 microcassettes that I had recorded at one time.

If you choose to use a tape recorder, you will still need to digitize the recording. Ensure you have a professional-quality tape recorder with an external microphone, and high-quality cassettes should be used. If you have a suitable tape recorder that has not been used for a while, take it to a technician for a maintenance check.

Features to look for in a tape recorder include the following:

Controls that allow you to play the tape (PLAY), wind back the tape (REWIND), wind the tape forward quickly (FAST FORWARD), RECORD, STOP and EJECT
A tape counter, which allows you to find your place within the tape by denoting a numerical location
A jack socket for an external microphone
Recording-level volume control allows you to adjust the volume at which you record
A recording-level meter
The option of using either a wall socket or battery power
A jack socket for headphones
A built-in speaker

How do I clean the recording head of a tape recorder? Cleaning your tape recorder with Isopropyl alcohol, which is 91 percent pure, applied with Q-Tips, will eliminate debris from all recorder parts that come in contact with the magnetic tape. Standard “rubbing alcohol,” which may contain some undesirable lubricants, should not be used because the ingredients may damage the rubber pinch-roller if applied regularly.

Cassettes tapes. The following are some tips to keep in mind when considering cassette tapes for recording your interviews:

Use 60-minute cassettes for recording your interviews. They are thicker than the longer-playing ones and are less likely to stretch (and thus distort the sound) or break. Do not use 90-minute tapes or larger ones. Longer tapes are too thin and tend to bleed, stretch, or tear.
Buy regular tapes, not metal or high-bias ones. The latter is designed for recording music and is too expensive for this purpose.
It is a good idea to use cassettes put together with tiny screws in each corner instead of glue because if the tape jams or breaks, the case can be opened, the tape repaired, and the case put back together again. If you are using tapes without screws, you have to destroy the case to get to the tape if it jams or breaks.
Use only name-brands of cassettes, such as Sony and TDK.

What should I use for microphones when conducting an oral history interview?

Whatever recorder you decide to use, it is essential to use an external microphone. If you are buying microphones, go for the best quality you can afford. An external microphone is preferred over one built into the recorder. A built-in microphone will record all sounds indiscriminately, including the noise made by the recorder itself. It is challenging to position a digital recorder with an inbuilt microphone to record all voices.

If you are buying only one microphone, you will need one with a stand, not one that has to be held. Hand-held microphones record any sound of the mic itself moving. Free-standing or table-top microphones are generally relatively unobtrusive and record both the interviewee and interviewer clearly if they are placed carefully. However, they often pick up an undesirable level of background noise.

Microphones pick up a range of noise in four patterns. The different types are as follows:

Unidirectional or cardioid, which picks up sound in a heart-shaped pattern in one direction. They generally record the sound around them but not directly behind them. These are the best type to use.
Omi-directional, which picks up sound coming from all directions.
Bi-directional, which picks up sound from two opposite directions.
Hyper-directional, which picks up sound from one direction only and has a very narrow field.

Microphones for indoor recording. For one-on-one interviews indoors, the best microphone is a small tie clip or lapel microphone. Lapel microphones tend not to record as much background noise as free-standing ones because the wearer’s body helps to absorb unwanted noise. Their only disadvantage is that most recorders do not have an input for more than one microphone, so while the interviewee is recorded clearly, the interviewer sounds very distant. There are two solutions to this problem: buy a recorder with two microphone input jacks, or buy a “split cord” which allows you to plug two microphones into one cord and then into the recorder. If your recorder is stereo and has two microphone sockets, you can get two microphones—one for your interviewee and one for yourself. They can be attached discreetly to your clothing and give excellent results.

Microphones for outdoor recording . For interviews done outdoors, a unidirectional (or cardioid) hand-held microphone is best, as it will pick up less unwanted noise. The ideal for interviews is to use two lapel microphones that clip onto the clothing of the interviewer and the interviewee. Electric condenser or dynamic microphones are perfect. Talk to someone at your local electronics shop (such as Radio Shack) or contact a manufacturer to determine what model would be best for your requirements. Tell them you will be recording voices, not music.

Should I use batteries, wall plugs or others with my recorder?

Most digital records come with an internal battery that will last for several hours. Make sure you bring along a way to recharge your recorder. Even better, bring an extra recorder if you can afford it if the one you are using fails for any reason.

If you use a recorder that uses batteries and has a wall plug adaptor, uses the wall adaptor first, allowing you to plug your recorder into an outlet. If you have to use batteries for your recorder, you will need a battery tester to ensure they are fully charged. I make it practice to fresh batteries for every Interview. If they are not fully charged when recording, the tape will slowly wind through the machine. When you play the recording at average speed, the voices may be distorted.

What more important, saving on batteries or getting a great, clean recording?

What should I use to carry my recording equipment?

A padded bag, such as a camera bag, helps carry your equipment and protect it from damage.

5. How to Set-up the Oral History Interview

The best way to approach someone you want to interview is by personal contact rather than by letter, and often the initial contact will be by telephone. This allows you to introduce yourself, explain your project, and outline the sort of topics you might cover in your conversation. The person you have approached may be uncertain or might feel they have nothing interesting to say, so you sometimes have to do a bit of persuading. The key is to talk in terms of “a chat about the past” or a “share a story” rather than an “interview,” which can sound intimidating.

How do I ask someone about participating in an oral history interview?

Once you have chosen the individuals with whom you would like to interview, I suggest you telephone them first. Only email them a second resort. Why? I find it much more personable to talk and have a conversation. If you can call or email, then send a letter. When I was working on my mom’s narrative, I sent emails to people and shared that I would like to speak with them about a story I was writing about my mom. I did not have anyone refuse to talk to me.

When you can talk to the potential interviewee, do the following:

Introduce yourself.
Explain why you are doing the project. Suppose the interviewee is a member of your family or someone you know very well. In that case, you will still need to explain the project, get their Agreement to record an interview, gather biographical information from them, and explain the other details listed here.
Explain what you will be covering in the Interview.
Explain that you would like to record the Interview.
Explain what will happen to the Interview once you have finished it.
Make an appointment to conduct the Interview and record it, preferably within a week.
Explain your desire to find photos, documents, and so forth to help tell the story.
Request their address or email address so you can write to them after they’ve had a few days to ponder your questions.
Give the interviewee your name and phone number to contact in case they need to clarify anything else.

Note: If the person does not wish to be interviewed, thank them for their time. Do not try to persuade them to change their mind. Every time I had coaxed someone to interview when they first said no, I had had a less-than-acceptable interview.

How do I prepare for the oral history interview?

Preparing for an interview—whether it’s ten minutes or all day in length—requires careful planning, research, familiarity with your equipment, and establishing a good rapport with the interviewee. Consider the following as part of your preparation:

Practice a couple of interviews before the real thing. Before you start recording, make at least one practice interview, preferably with someone you know, so that you are not afraid to make mistakes. This will give you practice in interview techniques and help you become confident in using your equipment. Practice setting up your equipment quickly and efficiently.
Take the time to experiment with different recording levels on your machine and change the distance of the microphone from the interviewee so that you know the optimum positions for recording. You aim to make recordings in which both the interviewee and the interviewer are audible, with little unwanted background or tape noise.

Tip: Take some time to watch or listen to how professional interviewers conduct interviews on TV and radio. One of my favorite interviewers is Terry Gross of Fresh Air f rom NPR.

6. How to Correct Oral History Recording Noise Problems

When you record an oral history interview, you want your recording to be clean and crisp. Sadly, from my own experience, I have had too many recordings that marginal at best because of simple things that have muffled and distort the voices. I want to share what I have learned about recording and address common noise problems that can affect your oral history interview quality.

Listed below are some common noise problems and suggestions for their solution.

Hiss. It could be your air conditioning or fluorescent lighting. It could also be caused by recording at too low of a level. Turn up your recording-level volume. It can also be read the instructions carefully.

Hum. The microphone may be too close to the machine and pick up the recorder’s mechanical noise. Move the microphone away from the machine. Alternatively, the machine and microphone may be too close to a power source or near another electrical appliance. If so, move the machine and microphone. The wiring on your machine or microphone may be faulty. Have them serviced if you think this is the problem.

Whistle. This could be that you are too close to a speaker. Sound is being transmitted, amplified, and coming from the speakers, albeit low.

Distortion . Having the level set too high when recording digitally can cause clipping, unwanted distortion of the audio. While distortion happens in analog recording, the artifacts caused by digital distortion can be more severe.

A popping noise when people say “p,” a whistle when they say “s,” or a sizzling noise when they say “t” occurs because either they are speaking too close to the microphone or the recording volume is too high. To fix these problems, change the microphone’s angle, move it further away, or turn down the recording level.
If you are recording someone with a high-pitched voice, you may need to adjust the recording volume.

Echo. This results from recording in a room with few soft furnishings and no carpet, such as a kitchen. Because there is little to absorb it, the sound bounces off the hard surfaces and is re-recorded.

You can get around this problem by moving the microphone closer to the interviewee, placing it on a cushion to absorb the echo, drawing the curtains, or moving to another room. A lapel microphone is helpful because the interviewee’s body will absorb a lot of echoes.

The effect will prevent broadcast-quality recording but is acceptable for research purposes.

Microphone cable noise. This is crackling or clicking noise on the tape caused by the movement of the microphone cable, which usually happens if you are holding the microphone.

It is best to use a microphone stand while recording. Alternatively, place the microphone on some magazines or a cushion. If you have to hold the microphone while recording, wrap the cable around your hand.

Cable noise sometimes occurs when you use a clip-on microphone and the interviewee fidgets with it. If this happens, explain politely that this will muffle their voice on the recording and ask them to stop. You may wish to give them something else to play with; a rubber band is an ideal toy for restless fingers, as it makes no noise.

Recording outside . You should avoid interviewing outside because it is almost impossible to control the recording of background noise.

If you cannot avoid recording outside, you will need some sort of windshield for the microphone, either a foam-rubber one you can buy or something like a handkerchief or a few layers of muslin secured with a rubber band.

Try to place the recorder on the ground or a wall, as the motor speed may vary if it is hanging from your shoulder, causing the sound to be distorted when you replay the tape.

Other sounds to avoid include rustling paper, clicking pens, fluorescent lights humming, clocks are ticking, traffic noise, caged birds, dogs barking, and open fires. To avoid the first two, use a pencil and write your questions and notes on a notecard rather than paper. There is little you can do about the others except notice them at the preliminary meeting and suggest recording the Interview in another room.

If you deliberately record some of the above effects when practicing with your equipment, you will hear how irritating they sound when the tape is played back. You will then realize why you need to make an audible recording for interviews, mainly if you collect for an archive.

7. Getting Ready for the Oral History Interview

Should I try to conduct the oral history interview in one setting?

Yes and no. Most of the oral history interviews I did to write my mom’s narrative lasted between 45 and 90 minutes.

When I interviewed my dad, I lived in a different state. I asked my dad if I could set up a series of telephone interviews that I could record. I chose to break up the Interview into 10 60- to 90-minute sessions over six weeks. Each talk focused on a different time or topic of his life. At the end of each Interview, I outlined what I wanted to cover in the following Interview to give my dad time to ponder what stories he wanted to share. During our interviews, he shared many personal stories that I had never heard. We laughed, cried, and shared many precious and tender moments.

Do you ask all the oral history questions on your list?

I try to make sure that I give the person I am interviewing a list of the questions before the interview, so they have time to think.

Did I ask my parents and others the questions exactly as they listed as I had them? No. I used the questions to begin our discussion and explore the stories they wanted to share. I would encourage you to make these questions your own and personalize them with the person you are interviewing. When you are ready to conduct an interview, have the questions to get the information you desire. Family conversations can go in many directions. When possible, with the permission of the person you are interviewing, record the Interview on audio or video.

Some of the best things you find out will be unexpected. Once you get started with the Interview, you are likely to be told some things you had not previously thought about, so it is essential to give the person you are recording plenty of space to tell you what they think matters. But you should not let the interview drift: it is your job to guide it. For this, you need an overall plan. Group the topics you want to cover logically. I like the chronological structure, such as talking through life stages in order. I have provided examples of questions organized by life stages to preview and download from the companion website.

What kind of last-minute preparations do you do for an oral history interview?

It’s now the day before your Interview. Take time to do a quick check of the material, equipment, and artifacts you will take with you to make sure you’re all set. A simple checklist might help make sure you have all the equipment you need. Ensure that everything is in good working order. Check that you know how to operate all your equipment correctly and fresh batteries or an adaptor. Put together a folder containing maps, additional questions, a notepad, pencils or pens, and interview agreements (if you are using them).

Review the questions you have developed and choose which would be most appropriate for each person and whether there are other questions you should be asking specifically about the family line the person belonged to (such as grandparents, times in which they lived and so on). Then send each person a letter or email with the following information:

Your name, address, email, and telephone number
A brief overview of the project
Questions you are going to ask
A request to share artifacts

8. How to Conduct an Oral History Interview

Up to now, I have talked about getting ready for the oral history interview. In this section, I will introduce how to conduct an oral history interview.

Where should I set up an in-person oral history interview?

Choose a quiet place. Try to pick a room that is not near a busy road. If you can, switch off radios and televisions, which can sometimes make it difficult to hear what someone is saying.

What should I say in the oral history introduction?

Before you begin the interview, explain to the person that not all of the information provided will be used in the family history. They will have an opportunity to see and approve it before being published or distributed to other family members. Explain that you will ask questions to prompt ideas, but they do not have to answer all the questions. If a question seems too personal, have them let you know and then move on to the next question; if they tell you something they later regret, have them tell you and let them know that you will exclude it from being used.

How should I set up my equipment and resources for the oral history interview?

It’s essential to make sure your equipment is set upright. Plug the recorder into the wall or put in the batteries. Switch it on. Put a battery in the microphone if it needs one, and plug it into the microphone jack socket. Turn the microphone on. Always check the microphone battery before going to an interview, and carry spare batteries at all times. I always put in fresh batteries for an interview. All you need to make you a believer is one experience where the recorder becomes slow or stopped, and you have to do the Interview over.

If using a tape recorder, make sure you have the tape in the right way, and remember that nothing will be recorded on the clear plastic lead-in at the beginning, so wait until it has wound through before you start talking. Alternatively, wind the lead-in tape through manually so that you can begin to record as soon as you press the “record” button.

Check that you have your recording volume adjusted to the correct level and your playback volume turned off. If you don’t, you may experience a shrieking noise called feedback. Check to see that you have copies of your questions and other pertinent material for the Interview. Place the microphone on the table or clip it to the interviewee. Press the “record” button or the “record” and “play” buttons, depending on your machine.

Remember that if your recorder has only a playback volume control, this does not control the recording level. You can adjust only by moving the microphone or speaking more loudly or softly.

If you have only one clip-on microphone, place it on your interviewee and speak up yourself. While it is more important to record their voice than yours, it is useless if the listener to the tape cannot hear your questions, making sure that your voice is also audible.

For a unidirectional tabletop microphone, the optimum position is for the two of you to speak over it at a 90-degree angle.

How close should the microphone be?

Generally, the closer the microphone is, the better the results will be. If possible, use a clip-on microphone and put it about nine inches from the person’s mouth. With a hand-held microphone, place it as near as possible but not on the same surface as the recorder nor on a hard surface, which gives poor sound quality.

Is there anything I should record before I start the oral history interview?

Before every interview, I will make sure that I provide some type of identification for the Interview. Why? Because it may be months before I will return to the recording to digest what was said. The following is a typical identification:

Interview with [Say the name and spell it. ](say—Susan Longhurst, spelled S-U-S-A-N, New word L-O-N-G-H-U-R-S-T) 25 September 2021. Interviewed by Author Schreiber. [State purpose of Interview]

What are the best practices for conducting the oral history interview?

As I shared earlier in the Guide for Conducting Oral History Interviews for Writing Narratives, I have conducted hundreds of interviews. The following are just important best practices that I incorporate in my interview:

Be reassuring. You are their guest, and if they are elderly, you may be the first person they have spoken to for several days. They will be as nervous and apprehensive as you are, so it is essential to be cordial and patient.

The Interview is not a conversation. The point of the Interview is to get the narrator to tell her story. Limit your remarks to a few pleasantries to break the ice, then brief questions to guide her along. It is not necessary to give her the details of your great-grandmother’s trip in a covered wagon to get her to tell you about her grandfather’s trip to California. Just say, “I understand your grandfather came through the Panama Canal to California for his immigration in 1925. What did he tell you about the trip?”

One-on-one is best. Interviews usually work out better if there is no one present but you and the interviewee. Sometimes two or more interviewers can be successfully recorded, but usually, each one of them would have been better alone.

If you are using interview agreements, ask your interviewee to review and sign the agreement form before starting the Interview.

Begin the Interview with straightforward questions. Start with questions that are not controversial; save the delicate questions, if there are any until you have become better acquainted. An excellent place to begin is with the interviewee’s youth and background. For example, ask questions about the following topics:

Date of birth and birthplace
Names of parents
Names of spouse and children
Names of siblings
Occupation, schooling

Ask questions that require a detailed answer. Early in the Interview, ask a question that requires a very detailed answer. After gaining the trust of the person you are interviewing, have some questions ready to signal to the person that you want details. Sometimes asking for a tour of a place, such as a house or place of work, helps gain much information. Ask follow-up questions with each “step” through the structure.

9. Use Open-Ended Questions in Oral History Interviews

Throughout the Interview, the questions that will give you the best information start with how, who, why, what, where, or when. Ask specific questions to get specific answers and open-ended ones to get longer, more detailed answers.

What type of questions should I ask in an oral history interview?

I am a firm believer in using open-ended questions. Open-ended questions allow people to tell stories they want to share. An example of open-ended questions are:

What did you like to do when you were a little girl?
What did you do on your first date?
Where do you like to go for a vacation?
Who is your favorite author, and why?
What some of your favorite experiences with your mom and dad?

As you develop your questions, use plain words and avoid suggesting the answers. Rather than saying, “I suppose you must have had a poor and unhappy childhood,” instead ask, “Can you describe your childhood?”

You will need some questions that encourage precise answers, such as “Where did you move to next?” But you also need questions that are open, inviting descriptions, comments, and opinions. Some examples of open questions include “How did you feel about that?” “What sort of person was he?” “Can you describe the house you lived in?” and “Why did you decide to change jobs?”

There are some points to cover in every Interview, such as date and place of birth and what their parents and their main jobs were.

I will address how to interview in later sections of this guide.

Where can I find oral history questions that have already been developed?

I have written a comprehensive 27 articles, 108 category series entitled “ 7,500-plus Questions About Life to Ask People When Writing Narratives .” The prompts and questions are provided to help you look at life from as many angles as possible when writing narratives about yourself, your family, and others.

Can you provide examples of oral history interview questions/outlines?

I like to break up questions into either period of life or by topic. Below is a sample outline of the interview questions I have used.

Married Life and Children

Children: • Names • Dates and places of birth • The health of the mother before and after • How father fared • Characteristics and differences • Talents and hobbies • Smart sayings and doings • Growing up (daily routine in-home) • Humorous episodes • Problems • Joys and sorrows • Accomplishments
Child-rearing psychology • Role of yourself, spouse, children in the home
Family traditions • Holidays • Birthdays • Graduation • Deer hunting • Funerals • Mother’s Day, Father’s Day • Weddings
Family vacations
Grandchildren • How many • Where they live • How their parents raised them • Things have done together • Trips to visit them and vice versa

Middle Age and Toward Retirement

General life pattern changing: • More time on hand • Financial situation • Different and new interests • New friends and associates • New hobbies (genealogy, golf, reading, music, art, books)
Health • In general • Operations • Allergies • Physical disabilities
Decided preferences- favorite foods and so on
Civic and political activities • Positions held • Services rendered • Politics • Political issues you were involved in • Memorable campaigns • Red Cross or other volunteer work • Church positions
New business ventures: Memorable travels
New and different homes
Retirement and its impact • Financial • Family • Leisure time • Volunteer activities

Personal Philosophy about Life in General

Your ideal-What personal trait do you admire most and why?
Regrets-If you had your life to live over again, what would you do differently?
One of the most important days of your life and why?
The greatest joy and most enormous sorrow
The biggest lesson in life you found to be true
The most important lesson, message, or advice you’ve learned that you would like passed on for others to profit by
One word on how to live successfully
Your secret for living a long, healthy, happy, prosperous life
Does the Lord answer prayers?
How you would like to be remembered
Funeral arrangements-music, speaker, ceremony, special instructions, headstone inscriptions, selection of burial clothes
Unique words of counsel to: • Children • Grandchildren • Other families

10. How to Get the Best Answers in Oral History Interviews

In an oral history interview, there is an art to asking questions. It’s more than simply asking a question and then waiting for an answer. I found this out when I used the same set of questions to 5 siblings from the same family in 5 different interviews. For example, one of my questions was, “What was it like growing up in your hometown.” One sibling shared how wonderful it had been and all the activities and people who were part of their life. The other sibling, paused and with tears, shared how ugly the city had been for them because of the teasing, bullying, and living in the shadow of an older sibling.

What are some best practices for conducting oral history interviews?

As the interviewer, you are the one who is asking the questions. You are the one who asked for the Interview. I can assure you that not every Interview is going to be great. It is just the nature of interviewing. However, there a few best practices for conducting oral histories and asking questions that help you get the best answers possible. The following are some of the most important lessons I have learned.

Avoid simple yes-or-no questions. For example, ask, “What were your living conditions like?” rather than “Did you have cramped living conditions?” Ask open-ended questions if you want a description or comment: “What can you remember of the trip over to England?” or “Can you tell me more about what swimming in the Great Salt Lake was like?” Don’t ask more than one question at a time.

Get past stereotypes and generalizations. This is one of the most challenging aspects of interviewing people. As well as a mere descriptive retelling of events, try to explore motives and feelings with questions like “Why?” and “How did you feel?”

Ask for concrete illustrations and examples. If someone says, for example, “Aunt Marjorie was a great cook,” then ask, “Could you give me an example of that?” This adds depth and illustration to the material you are collecting; it also requires the interviewee to be specific and qualify sweeping statements.

Use “reversals” to gain more in-depth information. As you interview, the interviewee will give general sentences, such as, “I thought it was a great experience,” or “Mom made a great stew,” or “That was a trying time.” Reversals are statements that say, “please tell me more” It keeps the flow of the conversation moving. The following are examples of reversals:

Sometimes you will need to use reversals multiple times for the same questions. I have learned that there is a rule of three for reversals. This means that you should use no more than two reversals. When an interviewee gives the third answer after the second reversal, that is as good as your answer is going to get. For example, consider the following exchange:

You are not the one being interviewed. You are there to find out information. You aim to get them to talk, not to talk to yourself. Don’t tell them the answer to a question: “So you milked the cows by hand?” Allow them to explain how they did things. Listen carefully and maintain good eye contact. Don’t contradict and don’t get into a heated debate. Respond positively—body language like nodding and smiling is much better than “ers” and “ums” and “really.” Try not to say “yes” or make encouraging noises, and don’t wriggle about or shuffle your papers.

Good interviewers don’t shine. Don’t use the Interview to show off your knowledge, vocabulary, charm, or other abilities. Good interviewers do not shine; only their interviews do.

Be sensitive and always respect confidences. Some topics may be sensitive or very personal. Be respectful of the interviewee’s feelings and sense of privacy.

Don’t interrupt. Be relaxed, unhurried, and sympathetic. Make sure that your interviewee has finished answering before you ask the next question. Don’t interrupt a good story because you have thought of a question or because the interviewee is straying from the planned outline. If the information is pertinent, let her go on, but jot down your questions on your notepad so you will remember to ask it later. Do not fill every pause they take. Most people will need to think about answers, especially if they remember things that happened long ago. Don’t worry if you seem to be straying from your prepared questions, as long as the information you are hearing is relevant. Listen carefully and maintain good eye contact.

How to manage a stray. It’s not uncommon for an interviewee to stray on a subject that is not pertinent to the discussion. Common areas to stray include family medical problems and what family children are doing. Try to pull the interviewee back as quickly as possible. For example, say, “Before we move on, I’d like to find out how the closing of the mine in 1935 affected your family’s finances. Do you remember that?” It is often problematic for a narrator to describe people. An easy way to begin is to ask her to describe the person’s appearance. From there, the narrator is more likely to move into character description.

Use your paper for notes . Jot down names or other details that you need to clarify before leaving. If the interviewee tells a story and you think of another question, don’t interrupt; jot down your thought and come back to it. Don’t sit and transcribe all of the interviewee’s answers.

Keep your questions short and precise. If your interviewee doesn’t understand what you’re asking, repeat the question or rephrase it.

Don’t expect people to remember dates. Most people won’t remember exact dates. Instead, ask, “How old were you then?” or “Was that before or after [Regensburg or Munich]?” If you have done your background research well enough, the answer should pinpoint the year.

What to do when stories are different than what you’ve heard. What do you do when the interviewee tells a story that is contrary to what you have heard? Tactfully point out to the interviewee that there is a different account of what she is describing. Start by saying, “I have heard . . .” or “I have read . . .” This is not to challenge her account but rather an opportunity for her to bring up further evidence to refute the opposing view, explain how that view got established, or temper what she has already said. If done skillfully, some of your best information can come from this juxtaposition of differing accounts.

When in doubt, don’t. If you feel awkward or uncomfortable in asking for sensitive or potentially damaging information, don’t ask. Your hesitation reminds you that there is a human being with feelings sitting right across from you. Details are important, but maintaining respect for privacy is even more critical. Sometimes, interviewees simply need a moment to compose themselves for sensitive discussions, or they may be evaluating your behavior as a decision-making factor in whether to talk openly about specific individuals or events.

Try to avoid “off the record” information . At times the interviewee will ask you to turn off the tape recorder while telling a good story. Ask the person to let you record the whole thing and promise that you will erase that portion if he asks you to after further consideration. You may have to erase it later, or he may not tell you the story at all, but once you allow “off the record” stories, he may continue with more and more, and you will end up with almost no recorded interview at all. “Off the record” information is only helpful if you are researching a subject, and this is the only way you can get the information. It has no value if your purpose is to collect information for later use by other researchers.

Ask interviewees to spell out measurements . “It was about this wide” will mean nothing to a listener. Try to get the interviewee to give a verbal estimate of size—”Oh, about three feet”—or give it yourself: “Is that about three feet?”

Don’t challenge accounts you think might be inaccurate . Try to develop as much information as possible that can be used by later researchers in establishing what probably happened. Your interviewee may be telling you quite accurately what he saw or heard. As Walter Lord explained when describing his interviews with survivors of the Titanic, “Every lady I interviewed had left the sinking ship in the last lifeboat. As I later found out from studying the placement of the lifeboats, no group of lifeboats was given another, and each lady probably was in the last lifeboat she could see leaving the ship.”

When a negative is better than a positive approach. Ask about the negative aspects of a situation. For example, in asking about a person, do not begin with a glowing description. “I know that Uncle Larry was a very generous and wise person. Did you find him so?” Few interviewees will quarrel with a statement like that even though they may have found the uncle a disagreeable person. You will get a more lively answer if you start in the negative. “Despite Uncle Larry’s reputation for good works, I hear he was a tough man for his employees to get along with.” If your interviewee admired Uncle Larry greatly, she would spring to his defense with an apt illustration of why your statement is wrong. If she did find him hard to get along with, your remark has given her a chance to illustrate some of the uncle’s more unpleasant characteristics.

Keep the recorder running. While you are recording, try not to turn off the recorder. You will not want to keep it running if you are interrupted by something such as a telephone call, but leave it running during pauses while people think. It is better to waste a little tape on irrelevant material than call attention to the tape recorder by a constant on-off operation. For this reason, I do not recommend the stop-start switches available on some microphones. If your mic has such a switch, tape it to the “on” position—then forget it.

The last two questions you should ask. In concluding the interview, ask, “Is there anything I haven’t asked that you think I should know?” and “Do you have any questions for me?”

Say thank you. At the end of an interview, it is helpful to say thank you while still recording so that listeners know the Interview has finished.

What should I do after an oral history interview is completed?

After the Interview is finished, don’t rush away. Take time to thank them and talk about yourself. It is also the time to discuss the copyright and clearance form (if you’re choosing to use one) and have them sign the form. You will often be shown some interesting old photographs or documents. Before you leave, provide an address, email and phone number where you can be contacted and make clear whether you will be returning for a follow-up interview or not. This can avert any unnecessary worry. Remember that your visitors will often significantly impact someone who has perhaps never told anyone their memories before.

When you arrive home, write a letter of thanks to the interviewee and enclose a copy of the agreement form (if used) for their records. Think critically about your Interview. Consider what was good about it and what could be improved next time. Prepare a listing of proper nouns, places, and jargon words or phrases for each interview tape. Examine an authoritative source to double-check spellings.

Are there any copyright issues related to oral history interviews?

I have not had issues regarding copyright in any of the hundreds of interviews I have conducted over the years. I always tell people to interview that the recording will only help me tell the story and share a draft of the story to review, make comments, and edit as needed. I will have them sign off that they have reviewed the narrative. I will always incorporate their comments and edits.

That said, it is essential to be aware of copyright regarding oral history interviews. Copyright issues may become a factor, even if you’re conducting an informal interview with your immediate family. According to the Oral History Association ,

“Anyone who creates an original work or unique intellectual property has exclusive rights to use, distribute, and profit from that work. Laws regarding copyright will vary depending on an individual’s country or municipality. In most cases, a narrators’ oral history interviews are considered their intellectual property, for which they are either the legal owner or co-owner of copyright. Others who wish to use, distribute, or profit from the oral history interview will first need to obtain the narrator’s explicit permission, license, or copyright. For more copyright information, visit the US Copyright Office . “

Legally, both the interviewer and interviewee share the copyright to an oral history interview (an exception occurs when an interviewer is conducting the Interview as a work for hire). While copyright may never come into question, you should still protect yourself from potential copyright infringement by having both the interviewer and the interviewee sign release forms at the recording time. To learn more, do a Google search on “Oral History Copyright.”

Is there a form I can use for an Oral History copyright agreement?

Below is a sample of an oral history interview agreement that I have used over the years. To find copies of other forms, do a Google Search on “Oral History Copyright Forms.”

Oral History Interview Agreement This interview Agreement is made and entered into this

Date: ______________by and between ______________hereinafter called “Interviewer” and ____________________, hereinafter called “Interviewee.”

Interviewee agrees to participate in a recorded interview, commencing on or about ______________, with Interviewer in association with his or her research on ______________.

This Agreement relates to any materials originating from the interviews, namely the tape recordings of the interviews and any written materials, including but not limited to transcripts or other finding aids prepared from the tapes. In consideration of the mutual covenants, conditions, and terms set forth below, the parties at this moment agree as follows:

Interviewee irrevocably assigns to Interviewer all his or her copyright, title, and interest in this work.

By virtue of this assignment, the Interviewer will have the right to use the Interview for research, educational, and other purposes, including print and electronic reproduction.

The interviewee acknowledges that he or she will receive no remuneration or compensation for either his or her participation in the Interview or for the rights assigned hereunder.

Interviewee understands and agrees that Interviewer may donate any and all materials to ______________upon completion of his or her research.

Interviewer agrees to honor any reasonable interviewee restrictions on the use of the Interview, if any, for the time specified below, as follows:

Interviewer and Interviewee have executed this Agreement on the date first written above.

INTERVIEWEE _____________________________________ (Signature) _____________________________________ (Typed or Printed Name) _____________________________________ _____________________________________ (Address)

Date_________________________________

INTERVIEWER _____________________________________ (Signature) _____________________________________ (Typed or Printed Name) _____________________________________

_____________________________________ (Address)

11. How to Take Care of Recorded Oral History Interview

Most of the people I interviewed in the years after my mother’s death are now gone. However, I have just a little bit of them preserved in an interview recorded in a digital and video recording.

Every life is important and unique. Think about it. You have just recorded the thoughts, feelings and life stories of an individual or group. Your Interview is about the people known, the places visited, the decisions made, the opportunities lost or gained, and the spiritual, physical, and mental vitality and folly. The following are a few of my best practices for preserving the recorded Interview.

What should I do with an oral history interview digital recording?

Once I have the digital recording completed of the oral history interview, I will save it as a WAV file. This is my master copy exactly as you recorded it. NEVER EVER edit the original recording. Make a copy of the file to use for any editing that needs to be done. I will usually make copies as MP3 files. To preserve material for the future, you need to use standard formats that computer systems recognize. Save the original as a .wav file or an AIFF, not as an MP3. WAV (or WAVE), short for Waveform audio format. Both WAVs and AIFFs are compatible with Windows and Macintosh operating systems. WAV and AIFF file formats take up considerably more space than MP3.

What should I do with an oral history interview taped recording?

If you are using a cassette or mini-cassette recorder to record the Interview, seriously consider digitizing the Interview. Digitizing the Interview will allow you to do the following:

Back up a master copy of the Interview.
Use audio editing software (like Audacity) to cut your favorite stories from the interviews and use them to augment family histories that are placed online.
Cut out problems like phones ringing, dogs barking, or small talk.
Easily transcribe and edit the Interview.
Easily share interviews. For example, I recently interviewed a person for personal history. Shortly following the Interview, the individual passed away. This was the only voice recording the family had of the person. It was easy to make an MP3 file of the recording and share it with the family.

Save cassette tapes . If you use a cassette or mini-cassette recorder, make sure that you make a copy before using them. You will then have an original copy, which should be put aside and used for no purpose other than making further copies. When you wind and rewind your tapes, especially if you are transcribing them, this can stretch the tape and result in distorted sound. Snap out the plastic tabs on the top of the cassette to prevent the tapes from being recorded over. Do not reuse the tape on other interviews. Place it in an envelope and store it in a safe place. I write on the envelope the date and who was interviewed. I also include the equipment used, date, place, time, and any additional notes.

Should I create a transcript of every oral history digital recording?

My emphatic answer is YES. A transcript or transcription is a word-for-word written copy of an interview. Transcribing an interview provides several significant benefits, including that there is no misunderstanding of what was said in an interview.

You can see where clarification is needed for the Interview, and you can go back to the interviewee for clarification as needed.
Creating a word processing document allows you to search for keywords and cut and paste sections of interviews with other relevant information under topics you have designated for your life history.
Transcription saves the wear-and-tear of the audiotapes and videocassettes, provides easy searching on a keyword in word processing, provides an easily accessible reference substitute for the recordings, and requires no special playback equipment or listening booth.
Transcription is another form of backup for digital recording.

What is the best way to transcribe an oral history interview?

For years the only way to transcribe an Interview was to listen to a recording and type the conversation into a word processor like Word or Google docs. Today there some excellent and easy options. The following are some examples.

First option-Otter.ai. I have been using an online service called Otter.ai . Otter.ai is a Los Altos, California-based technology company that develops speech-to-text transcription and translation applications using artificial intelligence and machine learning. Its software, called Otter, shows captions for live speakers and generates written transcriptions of the speeches.

I upload an mp3 version of my oral history interview, and in less than a half-hour, I have a complete transcript of the Interview. The transcript is 95-plus percent accurate. You the ability to listen to the recording, correct text and more. I loved this service. It costs me about $10 a month. Stay for a month or longer. There are not contracts.

Second option-Microsoft Word Transcribe. The transcribe feature converts speech to a text transcript with each speaker individually separated. After your conversation, Interview, or meeting, you can revisit parts of the recording by playing back the timestamped audio and edit the transcription to make corrections. You can save the full transcript as a Word document or insert snippets of it into existing documents.

Google also has a text-to-speech option. At the time of this writing, there was a cost. Honestly, I was so pleased with Otter.ai, that I did not look too close at Google.

The third option-Dragon Naturally Speaking. Use the software Dragon Naturally listens to your voice and types the words out. Used most often by healthcare, legal and law enforcement, Dragon Naturally Speaking requires the user to record their voice imprint. This voice imprint is then used to recognize words spoken by this person. I have used the software a lot. I would listen to the interview recording in one ear and speak into the microphone with Dragon Naturally Speaking software open. It took me a day or two to get acquainted without using the software. But once I did, I could transcribe a 1-hour recording in about 2.5 hours. If you have someone who wants to tell their story, like a parent, this might be the way to go.

Fourth option-Listen and type. This is simply listening and typing what you hear in a word processor. I type around 65 words a minute. For every hour recording, it takes me 4-plus hours to transcribe. I would seriously consider Options 1-3.

How complete should the oral history interview transcript be?

The purpose of the transcript is to provide you access to critical details from the Interview. On average, I will transcribe from 40 to 70 percent of the Interview. I will focus on the question and the key answers to the questions. In my transcription, I will list the name of the interviewee, equipment used, date, time, and place of the Interview, and key highlights of the Interview.

There are portions of the Interview where “abstracting” is a great choice. Abstracting is where you will briefly tell what is being discussed and then insert word-for-word transcription as needed. For example, “Recalls where he was when WWII was declared. Describes atmosphere at home. [Now transcribe detailed explanation of feelings and so forth.].”

Use words like explains, describes, mentions, recounts, and recalls to give the researcher an idea of what is included and how much material there is on a particular topic. “Mentions how traveled to school,” for example, means that there is less information than if you had written, “Describes how traveled to school.” It is essential to choose your words carefully.

Tips for Creating and Editing Transcripts. The following are few things that I have done to improve and get the most out of oral history interview transcriptions.

Listen to about ten minutes of the Interview before starting to transcribe.
Transcribe what you hear. Do not put words or phrases into the interviewee’s mouth, even if what they say is awkward or ungrammatical. Do not change the word order.
Identify Transcriber . At the beginning of the transcript, the identity who transcribed the tape edited the transcript, and the date(s) these tasks were done.
Highlight quotes. Highlight the best potential quotes in another color (such as blue, red) by using the highlighting icon on the formatting toolbar or by highlighting with a highlighter on the hard copy. It will save you time later on.
Title page. Include a title page with the name of the interviewee, the interviewer, and the date of the Interview. State clearly whether restrictions have been placed on any parts of the Interview.
Formatting . When formatting the text on the page, use one-inch margins on each side of the paper, number the pages, and double-space the text.
Identify the speaker. Identify all speakers at the start of their comments by typing their name in bolded capital letters, followed by a colon—for example, SMITH:
Verbatim transcript. Create a verbatim transcript, but omit such expressions as “um” or “ah.” Include expressions such as “um hum” or “huh- huh” when used to mean “yes” or “no” in response to specific questions.
Transcribe as you hear it . Do not revise the narrator’s words to force them into standard written prose. Leave any sentence fragments, run-on sentences, and incorrect grammar untouched. Commas and dashes may be used to reflect pauses in the spoken words.
Punctuate. Punctuate so that the transcript makes sense of the words as they were spoken. Be consistent in your punctuation; don’t, for example, indicate a pause by a dash (—) in some transcripts and three dots ( . . .) in others.
Use of periods. Put in periods at what seem to be natural sentence breaks. Transcripts with little punctuation are very difficult to read, let alone understand.
Managing changes. If changes are made, clearly indicate when and how the transcript differs from the original tape recording.
Use “stage directions” with care . Some may be useful to help understand what is happening; for example, “[reading from newspaper]” or “[interruption for telephone call]” may be helpful. Still, those making interpretations—such as “[laughs sarcastically] “—should be used with caution.
Contractions. Include word contractions as they occur, such as “don’t” and “wouldn’t.”
Question marks. Place a question mark before and after a word or phrase to indicate any uncertainty about it, such as “?destroyed?.”
Identifying garbled sections. Identify garbled or inaudible portions of the tape. If one word is inaudible, indicate the gap with an underscore ( ).
Inaudible sections. When multiple words are inaudible, insert ” +” or estimate the elapsed time using a time indicator, such as ” . . ..(3 seconds).”
When done. When you are satisfied that what is on the page accurately reflects what is on the tape, type a final copy and assemble the interview file.
If you are transcribing cassette tapes….
Transcribing setup. It will help if you have special transcribing equipment, such as good headphones and a transcribing machine that foot pedals can operate so you can stop and rewind the tape during playback, freeing the hands for transcribing. They also play at variable speeds to enable muffled or garbled portions to be intelligible. Using an ordinary recorder will take longer. If you have access to a personal computer, it will be easier to correct mistakes, although making the first draft by hand works quite well. Manufacturers of transcribers include Sony and Panasonic, among others.
Sides of Tape. Indicate the end of a side of the tape in capital letters—END OF SIDE ONE, TAPE ONE; BEGIN SIDE TWO, TAPE ONE.

12. Documenting Oral History Interview and Narrative

As the individual writing the individual narrative, it becomes your responsibility to collect complete, accurate, and reliable documentation, especially if you intend to incorporate the information into a book or article for distribution.

If pieces of written and oral information contradict each other, then you must go deeper to determine which is more accurate, unless contradiction is the key to the issue.

Sometimes, interviewers will recall events in the form of past conversations (“she said to me . . .”). People reconstruct dialogue not only in oral histories but also in letters and diaries, and the results can be treacherous for those wanting to publish the “truth.” When you, as the researcher and interviewer, hear such dialogue, measure the conversation with what they already know (or don’t know) about the subject and even the interviewee. Most often, you are going to need to do further research.

How do you sort out hearsay?

The interview is the cornerstone to writing narratives, yet it’s an opinion, a perception that is presented as fact. As the narrative writer, I understand the importance of documentation and additional research to confirm and effectively tell the story.

How can I add background information to the narrative?

During the research and writing of your narrative, you will have the opportunity to expand and provide background to help make the narrative richer and more inviting. Depending on your needs, consider the following:

Public library. Take advantage of your public library and libraries in the areas where your ancestors lived. Many libraries have extensive departments with staff knowledgeable about the history and people of the region or state.
Search genealogy and historical associations in the locales you are researching. These organizations have valuable records and dedicated people who are familiar with the history of the region.
Use online resources—archives of source documents, places to search for ancestral information, discussion forums to share with other researchers, and blogs that offer advice, links to other resources, and opportunities to make contacts.
Be as eager to share information as you are to obtain it. You may have a piece of information that fills a gap for someone else.
Gather enough information to work with before you start writing, but expect to continue researching throughout the writing process.

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This is fantastic. I always want to glean everything from my grandparents before its too late but I never know what to ask.

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Oral Histories

Interviewing guidelines, equipment and audio recording tips, interviewing techniques, interviewing tips, more information.

The one piece of equipment that makes the difference between an audible and an inaudible recording is an external microphone. Even a very inexpensive recorder can produce an adequate, clear recording with a relatively low-priced (under $50) condenser microphone, which is a microphone with its own power source, usually a battery. Unless the interview circumstances require the interview to be conducted while walking or moving about, an expensive wireless microphone is not necessary; one that simply plugs into the recorder will work well. The mike should also be a lapel mike, which the interviewee clips on, rather than an external mike that on a table. That focuses the recording on the interviewee's voice, rather than indiscriminately picking up every sound in the room. Finally, if only the interviewee is miked, the interviewer's questions will usually still be audible, although faintly. Having a second microphone for the interviewer is ideal; note that it may require the use of a splitter to connect both mikes into one jack.

The recorder does not need to be expensive, but it must have two essential features: a microphone outlet and the capacity to deactivate the "voice-activated" function. Leaving the voice-activation function on produces a jerky, start-and-stop recording that chops off beginnings of sentences.

Before conducting the first interview, practice recording with the equipment to become completely comfortable with its controls and to know how to troubleshoot any technical problems.

Conduct the interview in as quiet a place as possible. Sounds that may be unnoticeable during the interview will inevitably be magnified on the recording, so avoid public places and settings with background noises such as construction or humming machines.

Do a brief test recording with the interviewee at the interview location and play it back immediately to make sure the equipment is functioning properly and there is no distracting background noise.

Make a habit of systematically noting the interviewee's name, the date and place, and any interview notes as soon as each interview session is finished. This ensures that that information is available when the interview resumes or is played back.

An oral history interview is not about the interviewer. The focus should be on the interviewee, and he or she should do most of the talking, with occasional questions from the interviewer to guide the interview in the most productive directions.

In general, a chronological organization is usually the best structure for an oral history interview. It allows the interviewee to show how his or her experiences and ideas developed over time, gives depth and richness to the topics being discussed, and offers a convenient organizing structure so that interviewer and interviewee do not simply drift among random reminiscences.

Since memory does not follow a strict chronology, however, inevitably the interviewee will jump around in time. That jumping around is important and shows how the interviewee connects different areas of his or her experience, so it should not be entirely discouraged. However, if the interviewee jumps around too much, the chronological thread of the interview will be lost. Sometimes the interviewer will decide that it is productive to have the interviewee leap to another time to illuminate the point he or she is making. In other instances, the interviewer may feel the interviewee is ranging too far afield and will want to gently bring him or her back to the time period under discussion and note that the disgression may be of further interest later in the interview.

Each new topic is best approached with a large question that allows the interviewee to describe his or her experiences at length. Questions that begin "Tell me about . . ." or "Can you describe . . ." are good ways of stimulating the interviewee's memory and allowing him or her to generate his or her own story rather than simply responding to predetermined forms. In general, the various topics of an interview can be viewed as an inverted pyramid: broad, general questions first, followed by questions asking for more detail.

What is of interest is the story of the interviewee's experience, not just facts or opinions. Try to get the specifics of his or her lived experiences before asking him or her to evaluate an experience or to offer analysis. In this connection, always ask the interviewee to speak in terms of his or her concrete experiences and not simply about what he or she thinks people in general felt or did.

Once the interviewee begins talking, the general rule is to not interrupt. Interruptions disrupt the flow of narrative, break the speaker's concentration, and he or she may never return to what they were about to say. Wait until the interviewee completes a story or train of thought to ask a follow-up question or introduce a new topic. With exceptionally long-winded or rambling interviewees, it may be necessary to learn to jump in very quickly and firmly when a story is completed and to set expectations at the beginning of each interview session about how much of the material on the outline should be covered in that session.

Once an interviewee has finished answering a question, be ready with follow-up questions for greater detail, context, clarification, and evaluation. Much of the interviewer's role is to be alert to what the interviewee does not say and to help him or her expand the story so that it is more meaningful for others.

Questions should be concise and focused. Try to be as precise as possible, and ask only one question at a time. Like most oral history skills, this takes a good deal of practice.

Interviewees cannot be expected to read the interviewer's mind. Avoid having the questions feel choppy and disconnected by clearly indicating shifts in direction or how one question relates to another. For example, use the following transitions: "We've talked about X, but now I'd like to move on to . . ." or "I'd like to follow up on something you said previously . . . ."

Yes-or-no questions are useful when it's important to clarify a specific detail but should otherwise be avoided because they do not generate the rich, full answers that open-ended questions do. Similarly, leading questions -- those that begin "Don't you think that . . ." -- and either/or questions that allow for only a couple of options should be avoided. Such questions foreclose opportunities to hear the interviewee's own thoughts on an issue, which may be very different than the options the interviewer might suggest.

Don't begin an interview with highly personal or sensitive questions. As the interviewee becomes more relaxed with the interview situation and with the interviewer, he or she will invariably open up more and will often be willing to discuss issues he or she would not have been willing to discuss at the beginning of the interview.

Part of the interviewer's role is to challenge the interviewee when necessary. An interviewer who knows that there is more to a story than the interviewee is telling or feels that the interviewee seems to be glossing over negative aspects should politely but firmly challenge the interviewee. This can generally be done in ways that do not antagonize by maintaining a neutral stance and simply asking for explanations of facts that do not fit with the interviewee's interpretation or by calling attention to other ways of perceiving the situation. Such challenges often appear less confrontational if the interviewer refers to other sources that disagree with the interviewee or, in a more general way, to "criticisms at the time" or to "arguments I have heard."

Further information about oral history methodology can be found on the following Web sites:

An Oral History Primer: created by the Department of History at California State University, Long Beach
Oral History Society: an international society based on England
Step-by-Step Guide to Oral History: from the DoHistory Web site

A guide to audio field recording equipment is available on the Vermont Folklife Center Web site.

Research Guides
Public Guides

Getting Started with Oral History

Planning an Oral History Project
Oral History Principles and Practices
Oral History Equipment
Conducting an Interview
Participating in an Oral History Interview
Preserving and Sharing Projects
Interview Forms and Templates

Before You Interview

Planning Your Project
Create Your Interview Outline
Pre-Interview
Check Your Tech

Careful planning is key to a successful oral history project. Before you jump into interviews, consider the following:

Step 1: Define your main question or topic of interest

Every oral history project starts with a point of curiosity or interest. Do you wonder what your neighborhood was like 20 years ago? Are you interested in a specific moment or event in history? Do you want to preserve the memories of elders in your family? Or the history of a group or organization in your community? All of these questions and more would be great starting points for an oral history project.

Some questions to consider when choosing a topic for your project:

What do I already know about this topic? What don’t I know?

What barriers might I face when researching this topic?

Is oral history the best way to learn about this topic?

Are there people I can interview about this topic?

Am I repeating someone else’s project? Have others done similar projects that can inspire me? Am I doing something no one has done before?

If you need help defining your project, reach out to us at [email protected] to ask questions or set up a consultation with staff.

Step 2: Determine your project goals

As you shape your project, consider the following questions:

Who is this project for and why?

What is the main topic (or topics) that this project will explore?

What do you know about the subject? What are you hoping to learn?

Are there people you can interview who are willing and able to share their perspectives on your topic?

What is the scope of your project? Is there a specific time period or angle that you can use to frame your topic?

What is your desired outcome from this project? For example, you could:

Add videos or recordings to public platforms like YouTube, Vimeo, the Internet Archive, SoundCloud, or others

Write a blog, article, or even a book

Create an online exhibit using platforms like Omeka , Pachyderm , Scalar , or others

Use interviews in a school project

Share an informal oral presentation with your family or community

Write down your topic and main goals. Even if you never share this document with anyone else, it will help you to have your big ideas on paper.

Step 3: Conduct preliminary research

Once you have your project focus and goals in mind, do some background research. Familiarize yourself with your topic and give yourself some framing information for your interview questions. The BPL is a great place to start your research, and librarians can help you find information about your topic. For help with research questions, email [email protected] .

Tips for Research:

Has someone already conducted research on the topic or topics that interest you? Does it make sense for you to pursue this project or choose a different topic that hasn’t yet been explored?

Review published and unpublished material about your topic in order to learn more about it and prepare for your interviews.

Who are the knowledge keepers of your topic? Are they willing and able to share their stories with you in a recorded interview? If no one has this information, or are unable to share information, then consider a different research topic.

Develop a basic outline of the narrators’ lives; a pre-interview discussion with your narrator is a great time to do this. Having a broad understanding of major life events or experiences in advance of the interview can help you craft your questions.

Step 4: Choose narrators

Narrators are people who share their first-person accounts in an interview. An oral history project rests upon the narrators’ memories: through their testimonies, they actively add their experiences to the historical record. It is important to build a trusting and honest relationship with your narrators in which they have power over their own stories. After identifying who you would like to interview, be sure to fully explain your project and the narrator's role within it. Read through the section on Informed Consent in this guide for more information about working with narrators.

Step 5: Create an interview outline

Once you have researched your topic and found your narrator, it is a good idea to construct an outline to guide your recorded interview. Because no two narrators will have the same life experiences, there’s no one-size-fits-all approach to structuring your interview. Instead, you can think of the interview outline as a flexible roadmap that guides you and your narrator through your interview topics. It doesn't have to contain fully scripted questions; some people find it more helpful to simply list key terms, ideas, or events that you want to inquire about. You can also share this document with the narrator in advance of your interview; this gives them a chance to help shape the interview by adding their own ideas and striking topics they don’t want to discuss.

Step 6: Hold a pre-interview

An informal, non-recorded pre-interview conversation with your narrator will help both of you map out your expectations, test your technology, discuss consent, and come up with questions together. Encourage the narrator to ask questions during this conversation and to state any topics that they don’t want to address during the interview. Remember: the narrator is the expert of their lived experience; listen to their ideas, and respect their needs and desires throughout the interview process. At the end of the pre-interview, schedule the interview itself.

Step 7: Record your interview

Before starting the recorded interview, make sure to test the recording equipment. You’ll want to make sure that the recorder is charged and working. Remind the narrator that you are there to ask questions, and that the interview will center their experiences. Because so much attention is devoted to one party, it will feel different from a regular conversation; this is okay! For in-depth information about how to conduct the interview, see the "Conducting an Interview" section of this guide.

Step 8: Consider how you will preserve your interview

When considering storage, it is important to remember the acronym LOCKSS: “Lots Of Copies Keep Stuff Safe!” Recordings should be backed up to computers and kept in multiple file and drive locations; consider cloud storage options as well.

Step 9: Consider how you or others will use your recorded interviews

We create oral history projects with the intent of using and sharing them with others. Depending on the scope and focus of your project, there may be many different options for you to share interviews with the world. Communicate clearly with your narrators about how you intend to use and share their interview prior to recording; do not use or share their interview without their express consent. It is our responsibility to use oral histories honestly and respectfully, and to honor the narrators’ experiences and intent. It’s also important to recognize that, in making an oral history publicly available, you are opening up a narrator’s words to interpretation beyond your control. For more information, please see the “Preserving and Sharing Oral Histories'' section of this guide.

Adapted from The American Folklife Center, Library of Congress, " Oral History Interviews: Family History and Folklife, " 2015.

Let your research guide you! Before sitting down with your narrator, create a list of key terms and phrases relating to the information you would like to learn. This outline will in turn guide your interview.

Tip: Drafting a list of specific questions ahead of time may feel too scripted and rigid, preventing your narrator from being fully candid and you from following up for details. Instead, compose questions around your key terms and phrases to help your narrators recall the past and share their stories.

A pre-interview conversation with your narrator will help both of you map out your expectations, test your technology, and unearth some avenues for inquiry.

Your narrator may want to know what you’re planning to ask ahead of time. You can share a list of questions or topics you plan to cover; this will give them a sense of structure, spark memories, and help build trust.

During the interview, your narrator may offer information that wasn’t on your topic list but merits further investigation. That’s okay! That’s great! You can ask follow-up questions, and once you’ve covered the new topic to your satisfaction, you can return to your list and move on to the next topic. Remain flexible and treat your outline as a road map; you have a destination in mind, but it’s okay (and encouraged!) to explore and take the scenic route along the way.

Example Outline

An oral history with a lifelong resident of Boston’s Egleston Square may use an outline that looks something like this:

Egleston Square

Description (geographical boundaries): Egleston Square straddles Roxbury and Jamaica Plain; runs along Washington Street from about Dimock Street to Green Street and along Columbus Avenue from about Dimock Street and Walnut Avenue

Origin of name: unclear but some scholars believe Egleston Square might have been named for William R. Egleston, a Black soldier who served in the Union Army's Fifth Cavalry during the American Civil War

What are your earliest memories of Egleston Square?

Important places in memory (residences, businesses, schools, churches, parks, historic sites):

Franklin Park

National Center of Afro-American Artists

Egleston Branch of the Boston Public Library

Egleston Square Peace Garden

Brewery Complex

Southwest Corridor

Residential neighborhoods

How did people get around? What modes of transportation did you use?

Orange Line - ask about Washington Street Elevated (1901-1987)

Times people got together: when, where, why (politics, sports, play, social life)

Concerts and games in Franklin Park

Block parties

Racial, ethnic, economic makeup of neighborhood

Changes in neighborhood demographics from childhood to present day

Neighborhood leaders, characters, important organizations

Kendra Hicks

Delphine Walker

City Life Vida Urbana

Describe relationship to the city? To surrounding neighborhoods?

Major celebrations in the neighborhood (holidays, rites of passage)

Sense of safety and security (examples: health, crime, environmental factors)

Effects of a major historic event on the neighborhood (examples: Great Depression, WWII, urban renewal, highway construction, Blizzard of ‘78)

Changes in the neighborhood over time

Adapted from Baylor University Institute for Oral History, “ Creating an interview outline ,” 2012.

An informal pre-interview conversation with your narrator will help both of you map out your expectations, test your technology, and come up with questions and ideas together.

This conversation is not recorded and gives you and your narrator a chance to get to know one another, iron out the technical logistics of recording, ensure the informed consent of all participants, and is an opportunity for the interviewer to gather some biographical information that can inform your interview questions.

Encourage the narrator to ask questions during this conversation (and any time!).

At the end of the pre-interview, schedule the interview itself.

You can use the pre-interview template in this guide to structure your pre-interview

Adapted from Boston Research Center, Oral History Toolkit , 2020.

Oral History Pre-Interview Template A helpful guide for structuring a pre-interview conversation.

Do a couple of test runs with your recording technology before conducting your interview. This will help ensure that you are familiar with how your gear works, and that you can make appropriate adjustments in the interview setting.

Some considerations and questions to ask yourself before you hit record:

Is your recording device fully charged? Do you have spare batteries and/or an extension cord? Do they work?

Make a short test recording (this is the part where you get to say, “Testing 1, 2, 3”). Play it back: is there background noise or feedback? Is the volume too low or too high?

Are you using a device with an audio monitor? If so, make sure you know how to set your audio levels prior to the interview.

What placement of the microphone produces the best audio?

Plan for interruptions:

Be sure to turn off phones or put them in airplane mode.

If possible, avoid squeaky chairs or chairs on wheels.

If possible, avoid fidget devices, including papers, cell phones, snacks, or cups (that being said, you may wish to have water available for both interviewer and interviewee).

If there’s a risk of surprise visitors, close the door to the interview room and tape a cautionary sign (e.g., “Interview in process”).

Consider the environment, and plan with the narrator. Do they have a noisy appliance in their home, a yappy dog, or a roommate who needs to watch a game on TV at 6pm sharp? Are there ways to mitigate these environmental interruptions?

If you need to turn off or unplug an appliance in your narrator's home, do so only with their consent and comfort! Explain your reasoning, and ask politely. Always make sure that you leave their home as you found it (if you unplug their refrigerator, make sure you plug it back in before you leave!).

How is the lighting? Standing and table lamps are preferable to overhead lights, which can cast a harsh glow. It may seem counterintuitive, but natural light from a window is not a reliable light source. Rather than risk the possibility of clouds casting shadows on the narrator's face halfway through your interview, you may wish to close the blinds or curtains.

Depending on your recording media, how will you know to switch the tape/SD card? Make sure you feel familiar and comfortable with your device.

Do you have enough storage space on your device? What are you using for backup storage?

Learn more: Digital Audio Recording: The Basics by Doug Boyd, Oral History in the Digital Age A rundown of digital recording technology and procedures.

Quick Tips for Better Interview Video by Scott Pennington and Dean Rehberger, Oral History in the Digital Age Useful tips for capturing a high quality video recording of your interview; many of these suggestions are useful whether you’re recording in person or remotely, via Zoom or another platform.

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Last Updated: Dec 12, 2023 1:23 PM
URL: https://guides.bpl.org/OralHistory

Oral History - Methodologies and Sources

The Interview
Introduction
Interview Design

Interview habits

Willa k. baum's interviewing rules.

Ethics and Law
After the Interview
Forms and templates

Oral history interviewing can be elevated by good habits or diminished by poor ones. In Oral History for the Local Historical Society (see the box below), Willa K. Baum provides a number of very useful guidelines for interviewing.

Mostly common sense, these points are also worth keeping in mind:

Encourage your narrator to relax. Let them get comfortable in the chair you’re having them sit in, and chat with them while you go over your checklist (see below). Let them know the interview can be paused at any time, if they’re uncomfortable talking about a topic, need some time to think, or use the bathroom. Have a bottle of water on hand for them -- throats get parched in oral histories.
Let your subject know that as the interview progresses you will be checking your questions and writing notes; that is, just because you’re looking down or away from them -- and if you're on your own, checking the recorder -- doesn’t mean you are uninterested in what they are saying.
Introduce the interview with your name, the date, where you are, and who you are interviewing (for example, “My name is Jane Smith and today is September 1, 2017. I am in Durham, North Carolina, and with me is John Smith, my grandfather, who I will be interviewing today for an oral history.”)
Ask your questions in open-ended fashion, avoiding simple “yes” or “no” responses. So, rather than saying, “Did you enjoy going to Duke University?” you could say, “Tell me about going to Duke University.”
Avoid jumping into a response or cutting off the interviewee in mid-reply.
Avoid verbalizing affirmation, such as “uh-huh,” or “mmmm.” While these may seem naturally conversational, they can really leap out of the recording when it’s played back. Just nod your head instead.
Try not to fidget, click your pen, etc. A good microphone will pick these up.
Your eyes should be on the interviewee or on your notes. Take your watch off and keep it on your clipboard or notepad (making a show of checking the time could make your subject anxious regarding how much he or she has said). Cellphones should be silenced and put away.
While diverging from the questions can be a great thing, keep the interviewee focused on the topics you came to discuss. This can be done fairly easily, simply by saying, for example, “Let’s get back to your days at Duke.”
As the interview concludes be sure to ask your narrator if there's anything they wished to include that hasn't been covered.

As noted elsewhere in this guide, to a great degree a successful interview comes down to good planning and preparation. This does not mean that a cheat sheet is not appropriate on the day of the interview. See this Session Checklist for some practical reminders on getting the interview underway.

A note on documentation: In an oral history interview produced by the Rubenstein Library, there are ideally three people in the room: the interviewer, the narrator, and, the recording technician. The recording technician’s responsibility goes beyond gear setup and pushing the record button. S/he brings critical listening skills, recording the content of the conversation on the topics sheet and relating it to the time elapsed, as well as assessing the narrator and the environment, and recording that information in the log sheet. The topic sheet can be invaluable when processing an interview that has not yet been transcribed, while the log sheet can give a sense of how the narrator “performed” during the interview, and if there were any distracting or noteworthy external elements affecting the production.

Topics sheet

If an interview does not have a recording technician, the log sheet should still be completed. The interviewer should try also to keep a record of the discussion using the topics sheet; however, if this is unwieldy, the interviewer could note the approximate elapsed time next to the questions being asked.

After the interview is complete, the log and topic sheets, as well as the question list used by the interviewer, should be scanned, named appropriately, and placed with the other files created for the interview.

I imagine Willa K. Baum was kind of an oral history taskmaster, but while the tone of these tips is somewhat stern the advice is quite good and comes from one of oral history's original movers and shakers.

Tips for Interviewers

From Willa K. Baum, Oral History for the Local Historical Society

An interview is not a dialogue. The whole point of the interview is to get the narrator to tell his story. Limit your own remarks to a few pleasantries to break the ice, then brief questions to guide him along. It is not necessary to give him the details of your great-grandmother’s trip in a covered wagon in order to get him to tell you about his grandfather’s trip to California. Just say, “I understand your grandfather came around the Horn to California. What did he tell you about the trip?”

Ask questions that require more of an answer than “yes” or “no.” Start with “Why, How, Where, What kind of....” Instead of “Was Henry Miller a good boss?” ask “What did the cowhands think of Henry Miller as a boss?”

Ask one question at a time. Sometimes interviewers ask a series of questions all at once. Probably the narrator will answer only the first or last one. You will catch this kind of questioning when you listen through the tape after the session and you can avoid it the next time.

Ask brief questions. We all know the irrepressible speech-maker who, when questions are called for at the end of a lecture, gets up and asks a five-minute question. It is unlikely that the narrator is so dull that it takes more than a sentence or two for him to understand the question.

Start with non-controversial questions; save the delicate questions, if there are any, until you have become better acquainted. A good place to begin is with the narrator’s youth and background.

Don’t let periods of silence fluster you. Give your narrator a chance to think of what he wants to add before you hustle him along with the next question. Relax, write a few words on your notepad. The sure sign of a beginning interviewer is a tape where every brief pause signals the next question.

Don’t worry if your questions are not as beautifully phrased as you would like them to be for posterity. A few fumbled questions will help put your narrator to ease as he realizes that you are not perfect and he need not worry if he isn’t either. It is unnecessary to practice fumbling a few questions; most of us are nervous enough to do that naturally.

Don’t interrupt a good story because you have thought of a question, or because your narrator is straying from the planned outline. If the information is pertinent, let him go on, but jot down your question on your notepad so you will remember to ask it later.

If your narrator does stray in non-pertinent subjects (the most common problems are to follow some family member’s children or to get into a series of family medical problems), try to pull him back as quickly as possible. “Before we move on, I’d like to find out how the closing of the mine in 1898 affected your family’s finances. Do you remember that?”

It is often hard for a narrator to describe persons. An easy way to begin is to ask him to describe the person’s appearance. From there, the narrator is more likely to move into character description.

Interviewing is one time when a negative approach is more effective than a positive one. Ask about the negative aspects of a situation. For example, in asking about a person, do not begin with a glowing description of him. “I know the mayor was a very generous and wise person. Did you find him so?” Few narrators will quarrel with a statement like that even though they may have found the mayor a disagreeable person. You will get a more lively answer if you start out in the negative. “Despite the mayor’s reputation for good works, I hear he was a very difficult man for his immediate employees to get along with.” If your narrator admired the mayor greatly, he will spring to his defense with an apt illustration of why your statement is wrong. If he did find him hard to get along with, your remark has given him a chance to illustrate some of the mayor’s more unpleasant characteristics.

Try to establish at every important point in the story where the narrator was or what his role was in this event, in order to indicate how much is eye-witness information and how much based on reports of others. “Where were you at the time of the mine disaster?” “Did you talk to any of the survivors later?” “Did their accounts differ in any way from the newspaper accounts of what happened?” Work around these questions carefully or you can appear to be doubting the accuracy of the narrator’s account.

Do not challenge accounts you think may be inaccurate. Instead, try to develop as much information as possible that can be used by later researchers in establishing what probably happened. Your narrator may be telling you quite accurately what he saw. As Walter Lord explained when describing his interview with survivors of the Titanic , “Every lady I interviewed had left the sinking ship in the last lifeboat. As I later found out from studying the placement of the lifeboats, no group of lifeboats was in view of another and each lady probably was in the last lifeboat she could see leaving the ship.”

Do tactfully point out to your narrator that there is a different account of what he is describing, if there is. Start out “I have heard...” or “I have read....” This is not a challenge to his account, but rather an opportunity for him to bring up further evidence to refute the opposing view, or to explain how that view got established, or to temper what he has already said. If done skillfully, some of your best information can come from this juxtaposition of differing accounts.

Try to avoid “off the record” information — the times when your narrator asks you to turn off the recorder while he tells you a good story. Ask him to let you record the whole thing and promise that you will erase that portion if he asks you to after further consideration. You may have to erase it later, or he may not tell you the story at all, but once you allow “off the record” stories, he may continue with more and more and you will end up with almost no recorded interview at all. “Off the record” information is only useful if you yourself are researching a subject and this is the only way you can get the information. It has no value if your purpose is to collect information for later use by other researchers.

Don’t switch the recorder off and on. It is much better to waste a little tape on irrelevant material than to call attention to the tape recorder by a constant on-off operation. For this reason, I do not recommend the stop-start switches available on some mikes. If your mike has such a switch, tape it to “on” to avoid an inadvertent missing of material — then forget it. Of course you can turn off the recorder if the telephone rings or someone interrupts your session.

Interviews usually work out better if there is no one present except the narrator and the interviewer. Sometimes two or more narrators can be successfully recorded, but usually each one of them would have been better alone.

Do end the interview at a reasonable time. An hour and a half is probably maximum. First, you must protect your narrator against over-fatigue; second, you will be tired even if he isn’t. Some narrators tell you very frankly if they are tired, or their wives will. Otherwise, you must plead fatigue, another appointment, or no more tape.

Don’t use the interview to show off your own knowledge, vocabulary, charm, or other abilities. Good interviewers do not shine; only their interviews do.

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Last Updated: Oct 25, 2023 1:59 PM
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Common Oral History Interview Questions

1. how do you ensure accuracy and authenticity when documenting oral histories.

Capturing the essence of personal narratives while maintaining factual integrity is a delicate task in documenting oral histories. It requires a balance between being a passive recipient of information and an active participant in shaping how that information is conveyed and preserved for posterity. The focus here is on the candidate’s commitment to historical fidelity and their approach to validating and cross-referencing subjective memories with objective data, as well as ethical considerations like respecting the narrator’s perspective and ensuring their story is told truthfully and with dignity.

When responding, it’s important to outline a methodical approach: start by explaining how you prepare for interviews, including research and familiarization with relevant historical context. Describe the techniques you use during interviews to encourage detailed, candid responses. Emphasize your strategies for cross-checking facts, such as consulting archives, public records, or other oral accounts, and mention how you handle discrepancies. Lastly, discuss how you ensure the narrator’s voice remains central, while also meeting scholarly standards of accuracy and reliability.

Example: “ To ensure accuracy and authenticity in documenting oral histories, I begin with meticulous preparation, immersing myself in the historical context and existing literature related to the subject. This foundational knowledge allows me to ask informed questions and recognize nuances in the narrator’s responses. During interviews, I employ open-ended questions and active listening to facilitate a narrative that is both rich in detail and reflective of the narrator’s experiences and perspectives.

For verification, I triangulate the information gathered with archival materials, public records, and other oral accounts, addressing any discrepancies through further investigation or follow-up interviews. This multi-source approach not only reinforces the factual basis of the oral history but also situates individual stories within a broader context. Throughout this process, I am careful to preserve the narrator’s voice and perspective, ensuring that the authenticity of their account is not compromised by the interpretive act of creating a historical record. By adhering to these practices, I maintain scholarly standards of accuracy and reliability while honoring the integrity of the oral history tradition.”

2. Describe your approach to overcoming language barriers in oral history interviews.

Successfully overcoming language barriers in oral history projects is crucial for preserving the integrity and authenticity of the narrative. It demonstrates a commitment to inclusivity and respect for diverse voices. Candidates should be prepared to discuss strategies for facilitating clear and accurate communication, which is essential to the documentation and preservation of historical accounts.

When responding to this question, highlight your experience with language diversity and your use of interpreters, translation tools, or language learning to facilitate interviews. Emphasize your patience, active listening skills, and cultural sensitivity. Describe specific instances where you’ve successfully navigated language barriers, ensuring that the essence of the story was not lost in translation. Show your commitment to ethical storytelling by emphasizing the importance of accurately representing the interviewee’s voice and experiences.

Example: “ In overcoming language barriers during oral history interviews, I prioritize the authenticity of the narrator’s voice, ensuring it remains unaltered through the translation process. My approach involves engaging skilled interpreters who are not only fluent in the language but also deeply familiar with the cultural nuances and idiomatic expressions of the narrator’s background. I work closely with these interpreters before interviews to discuss the project’s objectives and the historical context, enabling them to convey the full depth of the narrative.

In instances where interpreters are involved, I employ a collaborative method, where after the interview, we review the translations together to confirm accuracy and to make sure that the essence of the testimony is preserved. This meticulous review process often reveals subtleties that might otherwise be missed. Additionally, I utilize translation tools as supplementary aids to cross-verify the interpreter’s work, ensuring that the final transcript is a faithful representation of the interviewee’s story. This approach has enabled me to successfully document oral histories across language barriers, maintaining the integrity and richness of each individual’s account.”

3. What strategies do you employ for engaging reluctant interviewees?

Strategies to coax narratives from hesitant interviewees are essential for effective oral historians. This question probes the candidate’s interpersonal skills, empathy, and adaptability, revealing their methods for creating a safe and inviting environment that encourages candid dialogue.

To respond, you should highlight your patient and non-judgmental approach, with examples of how you’ve previously built rapport and trust. Discuss techniques such as active listening, reaffirming confidentiality, and explaining the value of the interviewee’s contribution to the historical record. Illustrate your ability to adapt to different personalities and cultural backgrounds, using subtle cues to guide the conversation toward topics that ignite the interviewee’s passion or interest.

Example: “ Engaging reluctant interviewees requires a tailored approach, recognizing that each individual’s hesitancy stems from unique concerns or experiences. In past oral history projects, I’ve found that establishing a rapport through active listening is paramount. This means prioritizing the interviewee’s comfort by allowing them to set the pace of the conversation and showing genuine interest in their stories, which often helps to lower barriers. Additionally, I ensure that I communicate the significance of their narratives in the broader historical context, which can empower them to see the value in their participation.

Another key strategy is reinforcing the confidentiality of the process and their control over the information they choose to share. I’ve observed that when interviewees understand they can shape their contribution, they are more inclined to open up. Furthermore, I pay close attention to non-verbal cues and adjust my approach accordingly, often finding an entry point through less sensitive topics that they are passionate about. This can lead to a gradual and natural progression into more substantial discussions, as trust is built and the interviewee becomes more comfortable with the process.”

4. In what ways do you preserve the emotional context of a narrative during transcription?

Maintaining the essence of the story, the tone of the speaker, and the subtle cues that convey deeper meanings is crucial in the transcription process. A skilled oral historian understands that the way a story is told carries as much weight as the words themselves. The question aims to discern whether the candidate possesses the sensitivity and attention to detail required to preserve the human element in oral histories.

When responding to this question, it’s important to demonstrate an understanding of the nuances involved in transcription. Discuss the techniques you use to capture the emotional context, such as detailed notation of non-verbal cues, ensuring the speaker’s voice remains central in the text, and reflecting on the ethical implications of interpretation. Mention any specific software or annotation systems you employ to ensure accuracy and how you collaborate with narrators for clarification without altering the original sentiment. Your answer should convey a respect for the source material and an awareness of the historian’s role as an intermediary between the subject and the future audience.

Example: “ Preserving the emotional context of a narrative during transcription is a delicate task that requires attention to detail and a deep respect for the source material. I employ a meticulous approach to notation, capturing not only the spoken words but also the pauses, intonations, and inflections that convey the speaker’s emotional state. This includes annotating laughter, sighs, and changes in speech tempo, which are all critical in conveying the narrative’s emotional depth. When necessary, I use phonetic symbols to accurately represent unique speech patterns that contribute to the emotional tone of the narrative.

In addition to these technical aspects, I engage in a reflective practice that considers the ethical implications of transcription. I strive to keep the speaker’s voice central in the text, recognizing that my role is to facilitate, not reinterpret or overshadow the original expression. This often involves collaborating with the narrator for clarification, ensuring that any ambiguities are resolved in a way that maintains the integrity of their emotional expression. I utilize software with advanced annotation capabilities to ensure that these nuances are clearly marked and remain an integral part of the transcribed record, thus allowing future audiences to experience the narrative as authentically as possible.”

5. Detail your experience with digital archiving tools specific to oral history collections.

The use of digital archiving tools is essential in ensuring that personal narratives are safeguarded and made accessible while honoring their original form. This question seeks to determine if the candidate has the technical skills and understanding of the unique challenges associated with cataloging and maintaining oral histories.

When responding, a candidate should provide specific examples of digital archiving systems they’ve used, such as OHMS (Oral History Metadata Synchronizer) or CONTENTdm, and discuss their experience with metadata standards relevant to oral histories, like Dublin Core. Additionally, they should discuss their approach to issues like digital preservation, access, and the ethical considerations of working with personal narratives. Highlighting any challenges faced and how they were overcome, including adapting to new technologies or addressing the needs of various stakeholders, will demonstrate a well-rounded understanding of the role digital tools play in oral history work.

Example: “ In managing oral history collections, I have utilized the Oral History Metadata Synchronizer (OHMS) to enhance accessibility and user engagement. My experience with OHMS involved indexing lengthy interviews, synchronizing transcripts, and creating a searchable interface that allows users to locate specific segments of audio or video recordings. This process not only improved the discoverability of the narratives but also honored the participants’ stories by making them more accessible to researchers and the public.

I have also worked extensively with CONTENTdm for the digital archiving of oral histories, focusing on the application of metadata standards such as Dublin Core to ensure that each item is properly described and easily retrievable. This included the careful consideration of ethical implications, such as the right to privacy and informed consent, when tagging and sharing personal narratives online. In doing so, I have navigated challenges like the digitization of fragile analog media and the implementation of digital preservation strategies to safeguard the longevity of the collections. My approach has been proactive, addressing potential technical issues and ensuring that the digital archives remain relevant and usable for future generations.”

6. Have you encountered ethical dilemmas while conducting oral histories? If so, how did you handle them?

Handling ethical dilemmas with care is crucial for oral historians who capture deeply personal narratives that may involve traumatic events or confidential information. The ethical considerations in such work are paramount, as the historian has a responsibility to both accurately document the participant’s story and protect their well-being and privacy.

When responding to this question, you should recount specific instances where ethical challenges arose during your research. Detail your decision-making process, emphasizing how you weighed the importance of historical accuracy against the need to respect your subject’s privacy and emotional state. Discuss any steps you took to obtain informed consent, protect identities when necessary, and the measures you implemented to ensure that the retelling of these histories did not cause harm. Your answer should reflect your ability to anticipate potential ethical issues and your commitment to addressing them with sensitivity and professionalism.

Example: “ Yes, ethical dilemmas are inherent in the practice of oral history, given its personal and often sensitive nature. In one particular project, I interviewed a participant who shared information about a controversial event that involved living third parties. This presented a challenge in balancing the historical value of the testimony against the potential harm it could cause to the individuals mentioned. To navigate this, I first ensured that the participant fully understood the implications of their account being on the public record through a detailed informed consent process. I then anonymized identifying details of the third parties to protect their privacy without compromising the integrity of the historical record.

In another instance, a narrator became emotionally distressed while recounting a traumatic experience. Recognizing the ethical imperative to do no harm, I paused the interview to allow the individual to regain composure and offered to stop the interview altogether. After a discussion, the participant chose to continue, but I remained vigilant about their well-being, ready to halt the process if needed. These experiences underscore the importance of ethical reflexivity in oral history, where the historian must continuously assess and respond to the evolving dynamics of the interview process with empathy and ethical rigor.”

7. Which oral history project are you most proud of, and why?

Revealing a candidate’s most prized oral history project can illuminate their passion for the craft and their commitment to preserving and interpreting narratives that shape cultural and historical consciousness. The response to this question can highlight the candidate’s ability to connect deeply with interview subjects and translate raw conversations into coherent, compelling narratives.

When responding, one should highlight the specific project that resonated most personally or professionally, detailing the challenges overcome and the impact the work had on both the subjects and the audience. It’s important to articulate how this project exemplifies one’s skills in research, interviewing, and narrative construction, and to reflect on the lessons learned through the process that have refined one’s approach to oral history.

Example: “ The project that stands out most in my experience involved documenting the narratives of indigenous communities whose stories were at risk of being lost due to rapid cultural and environmental changes. This project was particularly challenging due to the sensitive nature of the stories and the trust that needed to be established with the community members. By utilizing a participatory approach, I was able to engage with the community in a manner that respected their autonomy and cultural practices, while also ensuring the authenticity and depth of the oral histories collected.

The success of this project was not only in preserving valuable cultural heritage but also in the way it empowered the community by giving them a platform to share their history in their own words. The oral histories collected have since been used in educational settings, providing a rich, primary source for understanding the nuanced experiences of these communities. This project honed my skills in ethical storytelling and highlighted the importance of oral history as a tool for social justice. It reinforced the necessity of approaching each interview with sensitivity, thorough preparation, and an awareness of the broader implications of the narratives we help to preserve and disseminate.”

8. Outline your process for preparing and researching before an oral history interview.

The preparation and research process is vital to ensure the narratives collected by oral historians are rich, informed, and contextually accurate. This question delves into a candidate’s diligence, thoroughness, and respect for the subject matter and the interviewee, as well as their ability to connect individual stories to larger historical frameworks.

When responding to this question, candidates should outline a multi-step process that begins with understanding the historical context of the interviewee’s experiences. They should talk about how they identify and review relevant literature, historical records, and any prior interviews. It’s important to mention how they establish a rapport with the interviewee, perhaps through preliminary meetings or correspondence. They should also explain how they formulate open-ended questions that prompt storytelling while remaining flexible enough to follow the interviewee’s lead. Lastly, candidates should touch on ethical considerations such as informed consent and the sensitivity to the interviewee’s comfort and boundaries.

Example: “ My preparation for an oral history interview begins with a deep dive into the historical context surrounding the interviewee’s experiences. This involves a thorough review of pertinent literature, archival materials, and any existing interviews or recordings that provide insight into the era or events in question. This foundational research ensures that I approach the interview with a comprehensive understanding of the subject matter, which is crucial for asking informed and relevant questions.

Next, I prioritize establishing a rapport with the interviewee, which often involves preliminary meetings or thoughtful correspondence. This step is critical in building trust and creating a comfortable environment for the interviewee to share their story. I then develop a set of open-ended questions designed to encourage detailed storytelling, while remaining flexible enough to pursue new avenues of discussion that may arise naturally during the conversation. Throughout this process, I am acutely aware of ethical considerations, ensuring that informed consent is obtained and that I am sensitive to the interviewee’s comfort levels and boundaries. This ethical mindfulness not only respects the interviewee’s agency but also enhances the authenticity and depth of the oral history being recorded.”

9. How do you maintain objectivity and minimize bias as an interviewer?

Presenting stories with minimal personal influence is key to maintaining the integrity of oral history. Candidates should recognize their own biases and have strategies to mitigate them, thereby maintaining the credibility and educational value of the historical record.

When crafting your response, it’s essential to articulate a clear understanding of objectivity and the potential for bias. Discuss specific techniques you employ, such as using a standardized set of questions, actively listening without leading the interviewee, and reflecting on your own preconceptions before and after interviews. Highlighting your commitment to continuous learning and seeking peer reviews to check for bias can also demonstrate your dedication to preserving the integrity of oral history.

Example: “ In maintaining objectivity and minimizing bias during oral history interviews, I employ a multi-faceted approach. I begin by constructing a standardized set of questions designed to elicit responses without leading the interviewee, ensuring that each participant is provided with the same framework for their narrative. This standardization helps to mitigate the introduction of my own biases into the interview process.

Active listening is another critical technique I use; it allows me to focus on the interviewee’s words without interjecting my own opinions or assumptions. Furthermore, I engage in reflective practice both before and after interviews, examining my preconceptions and how they might influence the interview. This self-awareness is crucial in recognizing and controlling for personal biases.

To ensure the integrity of my work, I seek peer reviews of my interview protocols and transcripts. This practice allows colleagues to identify any inadvertent bias that I may have missed, providing an additional layer of scrutiny. By continuously learning from peers and staying abreast of best practices in oral history, I strive to uphold the highest standards of objectivity in my interviews.”

10. What role does community involvement play in your oral history projects?

Active community participation in oral history projects lends authenticity and depth to the narrative, ensuring that the history documented is a tapestry of personal experiences and local lore. It also fosters a sense of ownership and pride among contributors and can lead to the discovery of hidden stories and perspectives.

When responding, emphasize your ability to engage with diverse groups and to create an inclusive environment that encourages individuals to share their stories. Discuss specific strategies you employ to build trust and rapport, such as attending community events, working with local organizations, or using social media to connect with potential contributors. Highlight your experience in facilitating conversations that allow community members to share their experiences comfortably and authentically. Demonstrate your understanding of ethical considerations in oral history, such as informed consent and respectful representation of participants’ narratives.

Example: “ Community involvement is the cornerstone of successful oral history projects as it ensures that the narratives collected are not only diverse and representative but also deeply rooted in the lived experiences of the individuals within the community. To foster this involvement, I prioritize building trust and rapport through active engagement with community members. This often involves collaborating with local organizations that serve as gatekeepers and have established relationships with potential participants. By working alongside these groups, I am able to create a platform where individuals feel their stories are valued and will be handled with the utmost respect and sensitivity.

In my approach, I also utilize social media and other digital tools to reach a wider audience, ensuring that the invitation to participate is extended to those who might not be reached through traditional methods. This strategy has proven effective in democratizing the process of historical documentation, allowing for a richer tapestry of voices. Ethical considerations are paramount; I am meticulous in obtaining informed consent and transparent about the intentions and potential uses of the oral histories collected. Moreover, I am committed to a respectful representation of participants’ narratives, acknowledging their ownership of their stories and the importance of their contributions to the historical record.”

11. Describe a situation where you had to interpret non-verbal cues in an interview.

Interpreting non-verbal cues is an essential skill for oral historians, as these cues can offer a wealth of context and emotion that enriches the narrative. The interviewer is assessing the candidate’s emotional intelligence and attentiveness to detail in understanding and documenting the full spectrum of human communication.

When responding, it’s important to recount a specific instance that highlights your observational skills and your ability to decode silent messages. Explain the setting and the non-verbal cue you observed, then describe how you interpreted this cue and what actions you took as a result. For example, you might have noticed a subject’s discomfort when discussing a particular topic, leading you to gently probe for more information or to steer the conversation to a more neutral topic before circling back. Your answer should demonstrate not only your skill in reading body language but also your sensitivity and adaptability in managing the dynamics of an oral history interview.

Example: “ In one oral history project, I interviewed a war veteran who, when recounting his experiences, would often pause and look away at seemingly random intervals. I initially interpreted these non-verbal cues as moments of recollection, but as the interview progressed, I noticed a pattern; these pauses were particularly pronounced when discussing topics related to loss and camaraderie. Recognizing the potential emotional weight behind these silences, I adjusted my approach by allowing more space after his pauses, signaling that I was giving him time and that his comfort was paramount. This subtle acknowledgment of his non-verbal cues seemed to put him at ease, and as the interview continued, he shared more deeply about the emotional bonds formed during the war, which were crucial to the narrative.

My interpretation of his non-verbal cues and subsequent adjustment in interview technique not only respected the veteran’s emotional state but also enriched the oral history with nuanced insights into the psychological impacts of war. By reading these silent messages and responding with empathy, I was able to facilitate a more authentic and humane dialogue, which is essential in capturing the essence of oral history testimonies.”

12. How do you adapt your interviewing technique for subjects with memory impairments?

Adjusting approaches to gather accurate and comprehensive accounts from individuals with memory impairments is a unique challenge for oral historians. The question assesses the candidate’s sensitivity to the limitations of their subjects and their overall skill in navigating the balance between facilitating recollection and maintaining comfort and dignity.

When responding, it’s important to highlight your patient and respectful approach. Detail specific strategies you employ, such as using open-ended questions that prompt storytelling, providing cues or props to stimulate memory, allowing for pauses and reflection, and being mindful of the emotional impact recalling certain events may have. Demonstrate your understanding of ethical considerations and the importance of creating a supportive environment that prioritizes the well-being of the interviewee over the collection of data.

Example: “ In adapting my interviewing techniques for subjects with memory impairments, I prioritize creating a comfortable and supportive environment that fosters trust and encourages open communication. I utilize open-ended questions that facilitate storytelling rather than pressuring for specific facts or dates, which can often lead to frustration or anxiety for individuals with memory challenges. This approach allows the subject to share their experiences in a way that feels natural to them, often leading to richer, more nuanced narratives.

I also incorporate cues or props, such as photographs or familiar objects, to gently stimulate memory and provide a tangible context for discussion. This method not only aids in recollection but also helps to anchor the conversation in personal experiences. Additionally, I ensure to allow ample time for pauses and reflection, understanding that the process of recalling can be taxing and that some memories may surface slowly or in fragments. Throughout the interview, I remain vigilant to the emotional impact of reminiscence, ready to provide support or redirect the conversation if the content becomes distressing. The well-being of the interviewee is always paramount, and I am committed to conducting interviews with empathy and ethical sensitivity.”

13. Share an innovative method you’ve used to showcase oral histories publicly.

Balancing the authenticity of the voice with the accessibility of the content is a challenge for oral historians who aim to engage and educate their audience. This question seeks to understand the candidate’s creativity, familiarity with digital platforms, and their ability to adapt storytelling methods to contemporary audiences.

When responding, highlight a specific example where you employed an innovative approach. Detail the method you used, such as interactive online platforms, podcasts, or community-based projects, and explain why you chose it. Discuss the impact it had on the audience’s engagement and understanding of the oral history, as well as any feedback or measurable outcomes that resulted from your approach. Your response should demonstrate your technical savvy, your ability to think outside the box, and your commitment to bringing history to life for a wide audience.

Example: “ In an effort to make oral histories more accessible and engaging, I spearheaded the creation of an immersive audio-visual web experience that integrated first-person narratives with interactive maps and timelines. By using a storytelling platform that allowed users to navigate through the history geographically and chronologically, the oral testimonies were given a vivid context that resonated with a diverse online audience. The platform’s design was intuitive, encouraging exploration, and it included transcriptions and multimedia elements such as photographs and documents to enrich the experience.

This method proved highly effective in increasing engagement, as evidenced by a significant uptick in website traffic and time spent on pages featuring the oral histories. Feedback collected through social media and direct user comments highlighted the project’s success in enhancing the audience’s understanding and appreciation of the historical narratives. The interactive nature of the platform fostered a deeper connection between the stories and the users, resulting in a more impactful and memorable learning experience.”

14. What measures do you take to protect the privacy of your interviewees?

An interviewer’s query into privacy measures serves to assess the candidate’s commitment to confidentiality and their awareness of the ethical considerations inherent in documenting and sharing personal stories. It’s a test of both moral compass and professional practice in a field where subjects’ willingness to share often hinges on the assurance of respectful and discreet handling of their accounts.

When responding, it’s essential to highlight your adherence to established ethical guidelines and any legal frameworks that govern oral history. Discuss your protocol for obtaining informed consent, the steps you take to anonymize data where necessary, and how you ensure secure storage and controlled access to sensitive information. You might also talk about your approach to sharing the results of your work, whether through publications, presentations, or archives, and how you negotiate these with your interviewees to honor their privacy preferences.

Example: “ In managing the privacy of my interviewees, I adhere strictly to ethical guidelines such as those outlined by the Oral History Association, ensuring that informed consent is obtained before any interview is conducted. This consent process involves a clear explanation of the interview’s purposes, the ways in which the interview will be used, and the interviewee’s rights, including the right to withdraw from the project at any point or to request anonymity.

To protect their identities, I employ techniques such as pseudonymization, where necessary, to ensure that personal details are not publicly disclosed. Interviews are stored securely, with access restricted to authorized personnel only, and I am meticulous in maintaining the confidentiality of any sensitive information. When preparing materials for publication or presentation, I review content with the interviewees, allowing them to vet what information is shared, and to what extent, aligning with their comfort levels and privacy preferences. This collaborative approach ensures that the dissemination of oral histories respects and upholds the privacy and agency of each participant.”

15. How have you incorporated visual elements into your oral history presentations?

Enhancing the emotional and personal connection an audience can make with the subject matter using visual elements is a skill for oral historians. This question delves into the candidate’s ability to engage an audience using multimedia tools and their understanding of how visual aids can complement and reinforce spoken narratives.

When responding, it’s important to convey your recognition of the power of visual storytelling. Discuss specific examples of how you’ve used photographs, videos, artifacts, or infographics in past projects to bring stories to life. Explain the thought process behind selecting each visual element and how it served to underscore the themes or emotions of the oral history. Showing that you are thoughtful and deliberate in your choices demonstrates your skill in crafting a compelling, multi-sensory historical narrative.

Example: “ Incorporating visual elements into oral history presentations is crucial for creating an immersive experience that resonates with the audience. For instance, when presenting a narrative on the civil rights movement, I integrated iconic photographs from the era that captured pivotal moments, such as the March on Washington. These images not only provided historical context but also evoked the emotions and atmosphere of the time, making the oral testimonies more powerful. The selection of each photograph was deliberate, chosen for its ability to visually represent the struggle and triumphs conveyed through the spoken words.

In another project focusing on the impact of industrialization on local communities, I used a series of infographics to illustrate demographic and economic changes over time. These visual aids were designed to complement the oral histories by providing a clear, concise representation of complex data, enabling the audience to grasp the scale of transformation that the narratives described. By aligning the visual content with the themes of the oral histories, I ensured that each element enhanced the overall storytelling, allowing the audience to engage with the subject matter on multiple levels.”

16. Discuss a time when you had to verify controversial or disputed historical accounts.

Meticulous research, cross-referencing, and a commitment to objectivity are required when verifying contentious accounts or those lacking consensus. This question reveals the historian’s research methodology, ethical considerations, and capacity for critical thinking in constructing a credible portrayal of the past.

When responding, share a specific example that showcases your expertise in dealing with historical controversies. Describe the steps you took to authenticate the information, such as consulting primary source documents, interviewing eyewitnesses, or corroborating with secondary sources. Emphasize your dedication to accuracy and the strategies you use to remain impartial. Your answer should reflect an understanding that history is often a complex tapestry of perspectives, and your role is to untangle the threads with care and precision.

Example: “ In one project, I encountered a contentious oral account regarding a local labor strike in the 1960s, where narratives diverged significantly between former company officials and the workers involved. To navigate this, I first cross-referenced the oral testimonies with available primary sources, including newspaper archives, company records, and police reports from the time. This allowed me to establish a factual framework around the events.

Next, I conducted a series of follow-up interviews, not just with direct participants, but also with community members who provided a third perspective. By overlaying these accounts with the established timeline, I was able to discern patterns and inconsistencies. Throughout this process, I maintained a rigorous methodological approach, ensuring that each piece of information was weighed for its provenance and reliability. The triangulation of these sources ultimately led to a more nuanced understanding of the strike, one that acknowledged the complexity of historical memory and the importance of balancing diverse narratives.”

17. How do you address power dynamics between interviewer and interviewee?

Navigating power dynamics to ensure that the interviewee feels comfortable sharing their story is a critical skill for oral historians. The interviewer’s ability to manage these dynamics speaks to their professionalism and ethical consideration, ensuring the authenticity of the historical account.

When responding, it’s important to articulate a clear understanding of the inherent power imbalance in any interview setting. Discuss strategies you employ to minimize this, such as practicing active listening, being aware of body language, asking open-ended questions that encourage detailed responses, and setting a tone of mutual respect from the outset. Highlight any specific experiences where you successfully managed these dynamics, and reflect on what you learned from those interactions.

Example: “ In addressing power dynamics between interviewer and interviewee, I prioritize establishing a space of mutual respect and collaboration. Recognizing the inherent imbalance, I employ active listening and maintain a conscious effort to ensure that the interviewee feels heard and valued. This involves attentive body language, nodding, and verbal affirmations that validate their experiences without leading or influencing their narrative.

To further mitigate power imbalances, I craft open-ended questions that serve to empower the interviewee, allowing them to steer the conversation and delve into their story with autonomy. This approach not only elicits richer, more nuanced responses but also positions the interviewee as the expert of their own experience. In practice, I’ve found that beginning with broader questions and progressively narrowing the focus helps interviewees to open up organically, which fosters a sense of shared authority in the storytelling process. Reflecting on past interviews, it is this careful balance of guidance and deference that has enabled me to capture oral histories with the depth and authenticity that they deserve.”

18. What is your strategy for ensuring diverse perspectives within an oral history project?

Emphasizing the inclusion of varied perspectives is crucial for oral historians to capture the full scope of the historical narrative. Interviewers assess a candidate’s commitment to comprehensiveness, their awareness of potential biases, and their ability to engage with different communities.

When responding to this question, highlight your proactive measures to identify and include a range of voices. Discuss your approach to research and outreach, ensuring you tap into different networks and groups. Detail how you would actively seek out underrepresented voices and create a safe and respectful environment for them to share their stories. It’s also beneficial to mention any strategies you have for verifying the information and cross-checking facts to preserve the integrity of the project.

Example: “ In ensuring diverse perspectives within an oral history project, my strategy begins with meticulous research to map out the various communities and stakeholders connected to the historical narrative in question. Recognizing that every community has multiple layers and intersections, I prioritize reaching out to organizations, local leaders, and social groups that represent the breadth of those experiences. This involves not just a passive invitation to participate, but an active engagement process where I seek to understand the barriers that might prevent individuals from contributing their stories and work to dismantle them.

To create a safe and respectful environment, I employ culturally sensitive interview techniques and establish trust through transparency about the project’s goals and how the stories will be used. This includes a clear consent process and a commitment to participants’ control over their narratives. Furthermore, I incorporate a rigorous verification process, triangulating the oral accounts with available historical records and other oral histories when possible, to ensure the project’s integrity. This approach not only enriches the historical record but also fosters a more inclusive and accurate portrayal of the past.”

19. How do you handle emotionally charged or traumatic stories during interviews?

Fostering a collaborative environment with parents and guardians can enhance a student’s learning experience. The ability to communicate effectively and build relationships with parents is about creating an alliance that works toward the mutual goal of the child’s success.

When responding to this question, emphasize your proactive communication skills, your ability to listen and empathize, and your strategy for involving parents in their child’s education. Share specific methods you use to keep parents informed and engaged, such as regular newsletters, parent-teacher meetings, or digital communication platforms. Highlight any experiences where your communication efforts led to positive outcomes for a student, demonstrating the tangible benefits of these relationships.

Example: “ In handling emotionally charged or traumatic stories during oral history interviews, I prioritize creating a safe and respectful environment for the narrator. This involves establishing a clear understanding at the outset that the narrator has full control over the sharing of their experiences and can pause or stop the interview at any time. I employ active listening and empathetic responses to validate their feelings and experiences, acknowledging the weight of their narrative without pressuring them to divulge more than they are comfortable with.

Moreover, I am mindful of the potential for re-traumatization and ensure that appropriate support systems are in place, offering referrals to counseling services if necessary. Throughout the process, I maintain a delicate balance between the historical importance of the testimony and the well-being of the individual, ensuring that the collection of their story is not at the expense of their emotional health. My approach has consistently allowed narrators to feel heard and respected, often leading to a more open and authentic account of their experiences, which is invaluable to the integrity and depth of the oral history record.”

20. Share an example of how you’ve used oral histories to impact social change or policy.

Oral history projects can serve as powerful tools for advocacy and policy influence by providing firsthand accounts that traditional narratives sometimes overlook. Interviewers are assessing whether you understand the transformative potential of oral histories and can leverage them to inform and reshape social attitudes and policies.

When responding, focus on a concrete instance where you utilized oral histories to highlight a pressing social issue or contributed to policy reform. Discuss the process of collecting the narratives, the strategic thinking behind their use, and the outcome of your efforts. Emphasize how you ensured the stories had a platform, such as through public exhibitions, collaborations with advocacy groups, or presentations to policymakers, and the tangible changes that occurred as a result. This demonstrates not just your skills in oral history collection, but your commitment and effectiveness in using these stories as catalysts for social progress.

Example: “ In a project focused on the experiences of immigrants, I collected oral histories from a diverse group of individuals to shed light on the challenges they faced in the immigration system. By compiling these narratives, we created a compelling body of evidence that underscored the need for policy reform. These stories were strategically shared with advocacy groups and policymakers through a series of curated public exhibitions and private briefings. The emotional resonance of the firsthand accounts provided a humanizing lens on the statistics, which played a pivotal role in fostering empathy and understanding among stakeholders.

The outcome was significant: the oral histories directly influenced the dialogue around immigration policy, contributing to the development of a more compassionate approach to reform. A tangible result was the establishment of a community liaison role within the local government to address the concerns raised in the narratives, improving the support system for new immigrants. This initiative demonstrated the power of oral histories to not only preserve individual experiences but also to serve as a potent tool for advocacy and policy change.”

5 Interview Guide

Workflow to conduct an oral history interview for UB Stories: 100th Anniversary University Oral History Project

1. Conduct preliminary research on:

Interviewees.

employment history

History of the University

Unpublished University Histories Collection 1947-1985
Oral History Project Collection 1971-1983
University of Baltimore 2000
University of Baltimore Alumni Magazine 1960-2019
University of Baltimore Wikipedia

2. Contact interviewees that have already been contacted by the project manager, confirm the interview, explain the logistics, and inquire about their availability.

Email Template

“Subject: UB Stories: 100th anniversary oral history project

I am [your name]. I am a student at the University of Baltimore and a member of the oral history project team at Special Collections and Archives.

Thank you for agreeing to participate in an oral history interview. I am reaching out to set up a date and time for your interview, as well as give you some information you might find useful as you prepare for your interview.

Please suggest a couple of times and dates that work for you. Our interviews will be conducted online through Zoom’s video conferencing platform. All you need is a webcam, microphone, and high speed internet on your computer, tablet, or smartphone. Additionally, earbuds with built-in microphones or external headphones would be ideal. If you do not have access to this equipment, please let me know. The link to our Zoom meeting will be sent to you once we finalize the date and time of the interview. We will record both the audio and video during your interview (unless you do not want us to record the video).

In advance of the formal interview, we can do the following:

Confirm that the internet connection is strong, and that the interview conversation will go smoothly.
Make sure that there are no background noise sources that might disrupt the interview.
Consider how to get the best picture possible by changing computer camera positioning, moving distracting background objects, or considering the available light sources.

I’ve attached a list of questions that I will use for your interview. We conduct interviews in chronological order, starting with personal background information, where you have worked, why you became interested in working at UB, etc. It may take between 60 and 90 minutes to conduct the interview.

Additionally, we’d like to have a recent photo of you to use for this project’s online exhibit.

Please find attached the Informed Consent and Deed of Gift Agreement forms to sign before the interview. You may choose to sign the Deed of Gift form after the interview.

There are two options for you to digitally sign the documents for us.

E-signature in Adobe Acrobat. If you are not familiar with this service please let me know that I can provide you with instructions.
You can print and sign the form, then generate an image of the signed form and return it to me via email.

Your interview will be transcribed and you’ll get the chance to edit the transcription before it’s posted online at Special Collections and Archives Exhibit website . In the meantime, you can explore the other oral history project that was conducted between 1971-1983 at the University of Baltimore.

Thanks again for agreeing to participate in this project. Your insights will enhance our knowledge of our institution’s history, and we truly appreciate you being a part of it.

We look forward to hearing your story.

Let me know if you have any questions, and we will continue our discussion via email or you can call me at …” [1]

3. Send the Informed Consent and Deed of Gift to the interviewee to sign.

Informed Consent Form Template

ORAL HISTORY INTERVIEW INFORMED CONSENT FORM

UB Stories: 100th anniversary oral history project

You are being asked to participate in an interview in connection with UB Stories: 100th anniversary oral history project because you are a part of a list of individuals important to and knowledgeable of the history of the University of Baltimore over the past several decades. You will be asked about your life and experience as a faculty or staff working at the University of Baltimore.
The interview will be digitally recorded, transcribed, published online, and made available for public and scholarly use at the University of Baltimore. Any member of the general public will have access to this interview and your words may be quoted in scholarly and popular publications.
The interview will take approximately 60 to 90 minutes. It will include video, audio, and transcript recorded through Zoom platform. There are no anticipated risks to participation in this interview. However, you can withdraw from the interview at any time without prejudice prior to the execution and delivery of a deed of gift (see the attached form). You will also have the opportunity to make special provisions or restrictions in the deed of gift. During the interview you may request to stop the recording at any time to discuss or clarify how you wish to respond to a question or topic before proceeding. In the event that you choose to withdraw during the interview, any recording made of the interview will be either given to you or destroyed, and no transcript will be made of the interview. With your permission, a photograph of you will be used if you provide it. If you withdraw from the project, any digital files regarding your interview will be destroyed.
Upon completion of the interview and signing the deed of gift, the digital recording and content of the interview will belong to the University of Baltimore Special Collections and Archives, and the information in the interview can be utilized by the University of Baltimore Special Collections and Archives in any manner it will determine including but not limited to future use by researchers in presentations and publications.
If you have any questions about the project or procedures, you can contact ………….., Project Investigator at ………. , phone number: ……, or email: ………

Interviewer signature ____________________________________________

I agree to participate in this interview.

Interviewee Printed Name _____________________________________

Interviewee signature ______________________________________________

Address _________________________________________________________

Phone number ________________________________

Date ___/___/_____ [2]

Deed of Gift Form Template

ORAL HISTORY INTERVIEW DEED OF GIFT

I, ______________________________________, hereby give my permission to the University of Baltimore (UB) Special Collections and Archives for scholarly and educational to use the video recordings, and all associated audio and text files, from the interview(s) conducted on _________________and the photograph sent on _____________________. I also grant the University of Baltimore’s Special Collections and Archives all the rights I possess in those recordings, including all intellectual property rights.

I understand that I am conveying all right, title, and interest in copyright to the University. I understand that the UB may post online the material in whole or in part for additional educational, non-commercial purposes.I understand that UB grants me a nonexclusive license to utilize my interview/s.

I agree to be identified by name in any transcript or reference to any information contained in this interview.

The foregoing gift and grant of rights is subject to the following restrictions:

__________________________________________________________________________

This agreement may be revised or amended by mutual consent of the parties undersigned.

Accepted by:

___________________________________________ Date_______________________ Project Investigator

____________________________________________ Date ______________________ Interviewer Signature

____________________________________________ Date ______________________ Interviewee Signature

____________________________________________________

Interviewee Street/PO Box Address

City _______________ State _____________Zip Code ___________ Phone Number ________________ [3]

4. Compile a list of topics or questions.

Questions For Interviewing Faculty, Staff

Early life, Education, and Family

When and where were you born and where did you grow up?
What do you know about your family ancestry?
Tell me about your family background.
How was it like to be growing up in …?
Tell me about your childhood and adolescence days.
Did you have any jobs in town when you were growing up?
How did you end up choosing to go to … University for your Undergraduate?
At what point did you decide to major in …? How did this happen?
Why did you decide to continue your education?
Tell me more about your time at the university where you studied. What stands out in your memory from that time?
What did attract you to pursue your PhD (e.g., doing research, teaching, etc.)
What would you like to mention about your time at … University for your Phd?
What would you like to say about your time at … for your Phd?
What was your first real research project? Was it your thesis?

Work experience before UB

Tell me about your experience at your first job as a faculty and teaching at the … University.

Working at UB

What year did you join UB?
How did you learn about the job possibility at UB and what, if anything, did you know about UB before you came for the interview?
What was your job at UB?
Tell me a bit about how you set up those early courses.
How much pressure was there to do research? How were you made aware of the pressure (requirements)?
What were the requirements for pedagogy or teaching at that time at UB?
How was your early impression of the campus once you arrived?
What did you teach?
How about your colleagues at UB?
Do you have any memories or stories about specific students or colleagues?
Are you a tenured faculty? Tell me about your experiences at UB when you were a tenure track faculty.
You’ve seen a lot of changes in the way teaching gets done and in the way the institution organizes itself. What observations you might like to share about those changes as UB has moved forward?
Did you have any administrator role at UB?
What University committees have you served on during your time at UB?
Is there anything else you’d like to say about your career as you look back on it and your time at UB?

School atmosphere

What are your thoughts and observations of diversity at UB? How has the concept of diversity changed since you’ve worked here?

Choose at least 10 questions from the examples above. Add any other questions to your interview if necessary. Be ready to make any follow up questions based on your conversation with the interviewee.

5. Practice interviewing.

Make a personalized checklist

6. During the interview:

For example, “This is (your name). It is May 25th, 2020, 3 pm. I am with professor … via the online platform Zoom and we are beginning our oral history interview”
Example, “The purpose of the UB Stories: 100th anniversary oral history project is to celebrate the University’s centennial by preserving the memory of those influenced by The University of Baltimore over the years. We will be creating a digital exhibit and making the recordings available online through the Internet Archive.”
Actively listen and pay attention
It is best to speak one at a time
Allow silence during the interview. Silence gives the interviewee some time to think.
Ask one question at a time.
Before moving on to the next question, make sure your current question is answered completely.
Unless you are looking for short answers, facts, ask open-ended questions that can be answered in a longer essay.
Begin the interview with basic questions and progress to more probing ones as the interview goes on.
Let the interview end on a lighter note. Do not abruptly end a discussion that has been intense.
Limit interviews to no longer than an hour and a half. [4]

7. After the interview:

Last Name First Initial Date of interview (yyyy/mm/dd)

SmithA20210412

Complete the field note form

Interview Field Notes Template

Full Name of Interviewer:

Full Name of Interviewee:

Date of Birth ____________Place of Birth____________

Interviewee occupation:

Interviewee Ethnicity:

Interview Date:

Interview Location:

Filename of the interview:

Approximate length of interview:

Summary of the Interview:

Add any additional notes, such as an explanation of specialized terms, correct spelling of names or places, any idiomatic words/phrases that you think the researcher might have difficulty understanding, or important themes or contextual information. [5]

Edit the transcript of the interview.
The project investigator should send a thank-you note to the narrator.

Thank You Letter Template

Thank you very much for your participation in the UB Stories: 100th anniversary oral history project. Interviews with you and other University staff and faculty will contribute to the University’s documented history.

We are currently transcribing and editing your interview. Once this work is completed, you will have the chance to review it and make revisions before the transcript becomes available on our website.

Once again, we are grateful for your contribution. [6]

The narrator should receive a copy of the transcript from the project investigator
Transfer the oral history files to the archives
The initial version of this template developed by (Fish and Wildlife Service, 2019) was modified for the purpose of this guideline. Retrieved from https://training.fws.gov/history/Documents/oral-history/Sample-Communcations-for-Interview-Planning-2019-03-04.pdf ↵
The initial version of this template developed by (Washington County Historical Society, n.d.) was modified for the purpose of this guideline. Retrieved from https://wchsutah.org/documents/Oral-History-Consent-Form.pdf ↵
The initial version of this template developed by (A Round Table of American Library Association, 2012) was modified for the purpose of this guideline. Retrieved from http://www.ala.org/rt/sites/ala.org.rt/files/content/deed-of-gift-2012.pdf ↵
Film Study Center at Harvard University (1999). Retrieved from http://dohistory.org/on_your_own/toolkit/oralHistory.html ↵
The initial version of this template developed by (Andrea L’Hommedieu,2008) was modified for the purpose of this guideline. Retrieved from https://library.bowdoin.edu/arch/george-j-mitchell/oral-history/OralHistoryManual%20Mitchell%202011May.pdf ↵

A Guide to Conducting Institutional Oral History Projects in Classrooms Copyright © by Fatemeh Rezaei is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License , except where otherwise noted.

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15 Oral History Interviewing: Issues and Possibilities

Valerie J. Janesick University of South Florida Tampa, FL, USA

Published: 04 August 2014
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Oral history interviewing is a viable qualitative research orientation for many qualitative researchers in various disciplines. Oral history is the collection of stories, statements, and reminiscences of a person or persons who have firsthand knowledge of any number of experiences. It offers qualitative researchers a way to capture the lived experiences of participants. The techniques of oral history are those of the qualitative researcher, including interviews, document analysis, photographs, and video. The current digital era offers many opportunities to address issues and possibilities for the oral historian as qualitative researcher. Three major issues that emerge are those of social justice, arts-based approaches to oral history, and transdisciplinarity. Possibilities are endless in terms of using digital techniques for data presentation, data analysis, and dissemination. The power of oral history is the power of storytelling. By using current technology and working in a transdisciplinary context, oral history may now be more readily accessible and available to a wider population thus moving toward social justice.

People are hungry for stories. It’s part of our very being. Storytelling is a form of history, of immortality too. It goes from one generation to another. — Studs Terkel

Many think of oral history as one recorded interview stored in a library or an archive and left on a shelf. In this article, I propose an active view of oral history that appreciates the techniques of the past and moves into the digital era with a critical eye toward analysis and interpretation of the oral history interview or set of interviews. In other words, we should consider moving beyond the oral history interview while incorporating it into any given narrative. In addition to interviews, and besides using documents in any given report, this article will treat the use of current technologies to augment the storytelling of any oral history project with an eye toward social justice. Current writers have awakened us to using a transdisciplinary approach to qualitative research in general, and that will be a major issue for consideration here. I use choreography as a metaphor to describe and explain the current state of oral history with an eye to the future and punctuate the value of arts based approaches to oral history. The strength of oral history is that it offers a firsthand view of the lived experience of any number of participants in any moment of history. Oral history is a powerful technique for qualitative researchers. It is powerful because it tells a story of one or more person’s lives. Furthermore, it renders a historical record for future generations. From these unique cases we can learn more about what it means to be part of the human condition.

Oral history is a solid way to capture lived experience. In recent memory we have a huge database of examples of completed oral histories following the disasters of September 11, 2001, and Hurricane Katrina—all of which are available online. These are also in print and on the web are free and open access. This is another admirable quality of oral history. Oral history is for the most part openly accessible in digital form, written text, and visual text. You do not have to pay to read an oral history, you may visit any library and view completed oral histories, and most recently, you may view on the internet many classic and new examples of oral history. Oral history archives are available online from virtually every corner of the earth. In this section, I discuss the issues and possibilities facing oral history in this digital era through the metaphor of choreography beginning with the basics of the oral history interview through the analysis, interpretation, and usefulness of oral history. Furthermore, in this digital era, free and moderately priced software is available to make interviewing and transcribing user friendly. Finally, future directions and possibilities in oral history will be discussed, specifically oral history as a social justice project, the value of transdisciplinarity approaches, and the value of arts based approaches to oral history.

The Choreography of Oral History

There are many resources on the web and in print defining oral history and describing basic techniques of interviewing. Here I use the term oral history as the collection of stories and reminiscences of those persons who have firsthand knowledge of any number of experiences ( Janesick, 2010 ). I use this particular definition because it casts a wide net, is inclusive, and is moving toward oral history as a social justice project. The heart and soul of oral history is to find the testimony of someone with a story to tell. In this article, the term testimony is used in its generic meaning, giving testimony, oral or written, as a firsthand authentication of any event. Oral history and testimony provide us with an avenue of thick description, analysis, and interpretation of people’s lives through probing the past in order to understand the present. The postmodern and interpretive appreciation of the study of people and their stories, those stories from persons generally on the outside or periphery of society, offer a unique opportunity to view oral history as a social justice project ( Janesick, 2007 ). For example, women, minorities, and any person or group categorized as “the other” may find a benefit from actually recording their stories not just for themselves but for future generations. As a social justice record is kept, the stories cannot be lost. While oral history as a genre is most often associated with the field of history, since the last century it has been readily used by the social sciences and most recently in the field of education. Many oral histories are written to describe firsthand witness accounts of traumatic events such as Hurricane Katrina survivors’ oral histories or the first responders to the 9/11 World Trade Center attacks. Other types of oral history include the long interviews with soldiers returning from war fronts to document the trauma of war. The US military has been documenting all these stories for over a century, and they are catalogued in military libraries to use just one example. Initially the oral histories collected by the military were from generals. Then as time went on, a gradual movement toward documenting the experiences of the everyday soldier became a goal. Likewise, throughout history oral histories have been documented by virtually every group and every possible category of individual who has a story to tell. Another example of oral histories in a complete rendering of an era or experience is the oral histories of Holocaust survivors. Most often noticed is the project completed by Steven Spielberg, who filmed survivors of the Holocaust over a lengthy time period, and these are available for viewing through his project. If we view oral history as a continuum of stories, we find elite participants’ stories on one end and ordinary participants on the other. In the middle of the continuum there is a median of combinations of stories from elite participants to everyday citizens stories. To use an example from the dance world, before his death, Merce Cunningham’s dances were recorded, as were lengthy interviews with him about his art. Thus a new database will provide future dancers and choreographers with a rich and textured archive about choreography, artistic expression, improvisation, and performance. This is what we are trying to do today in the field of oral history. We are documenting the lived experience of individuals who experience life in any of its stages.

Oral History as Technique

Like the choreographer, all oral historians and qualitative researchers have to come to grips with the central techniques needed to tell a story. For oral historians, the well-tested techniques of interviewing and document analysis are first and foremost. Furthermore, in this the postmodern era, the visual image through photography and videotaping may take prominent roles in terms of technique. Since interviewing is the heart and soul of oral history, the discussion begins here. There are literally thousands of articles in print and hundreds of books on interviewing.

Obviously, interviewing has taken hold in the social sciences, the arts, the sciences, society at large, business, and of course journalism. For the purposes of this article, we will look at interviewing in multiple ways. The first way is metaphorically by conceptualizing an interview much like a choreographer conceptualizes a dance. Both are working toward a performance activity—one a completed dance and the other a completed interview. Both are connected to some individual or group of individuals communicating through a regular feedback loop. Both work with social context, social boundaries, what to include and exclude, and what to eventually present in the form of a narrative or story.

Another way to look at interviewing is in terms of a creative habit. Like the dancer or choreographer who see dance and its technique as a creative habit, the oral historian as interviewer may view the interview as a creative habit. ( See Janesick, 2011 ). Many choreographers have written about the creative habit ( Hawkins, 1992 ; Tharp, 2003 ; De Mille, 1992 ). In my own field of education, it was John Dewey who wrote extensively on this topic featuring the idea of habits of mind ( Dewey, 1934 ). I mention this to point out the transdisciplinary nature of the ideas of habits of mind and body. Transdisciplinarity has been described extensively and is influencing our understanding of research. (See Leavy, 2009 , 2011 , 2012 ). Transdisciplinary approaches are problem based, are methodologically sensitive, and are responsive to voices outside and inside the margins of society. They represent a holistic approach to research methods. For oral history, that means stretching to collaborate with at least one other discipline with high levels of integration. It means thinking in a new way about oral history and its borders. Thus it is an evolution toward developing new theoretical, conceptual, and methodological frameworks. For the oral historian, this is a custom fit. We already have at least two defined disciplines, oral history and qualitative research methodology, to begin with. Usually and most often another discipline—such as the performing or visual arts, sociology, or anthropology—may provide a third part of the triangle. If we used arts-based approaches such as film, photography, painting, dance, sculpture, theater, or graphic arts in our work, we add another textural layer. For the purposes of this article, I will focus on interviewing as a creative habit dependent upon a collection of good habits of mind as well as practical habits. I have written about qualitative techniques as creative habits previously ( Janesick, 2011 ). These habits include the creative habit, the writing habit, the interview habit, the observation habit, and the analysis and interpretation habit. I extend these ideas throughout this essay. Furthermore, the work of Elliot Eisner (1991 , 2002 ) has been profoundly influential. His career, which is devoted to clarifying the importance of arts-based approaches to education, cannot be overlooked.

Interviewing as a Creative Habit

If we think about the creative act of interviewing, it may be a useful tool for oral historians and other qualitative researchers. Creativity is essentially about discovery, and interviewing allows us a great deal of room to discover the meaning of a person’s life or portion of a life as well as allowing for an understanding of ourselves as researchers. I use creativity here in the sense that Csikszentmihaly (1996) views creativity, which is as a process by which a symbolic domain in the culture is changed. The creative act of interviewing is such a process for the symbolic meaning of the interview, its analysis and interpretation, and its final narrative form change the landscape of the historical record. Each researcher, dancer, choreographer, or social scientist is called upon to develop habits of mind and body that change the culture. Some practical habits for the interviewer may include preparing materials for the interview such as testing the digital voice recorder, bringing an extra thumb drive for the recorder, and bringing a battery charger if the recorder is chargeable. In other words, all the technical components need to be in order to facilitate the creative habit of interviewing. In addition, the habit of being at the site of the interview ahead of time to test equipment and see that the setting is in order is always a good practical habit to develop. Another habit of mind is to compose as many thoughtful questions as possible. It is far better to be overprepared rather than to get caught in an interview without questions. Usually five or six questions of the type described in the following section are reasonable and may yield well over an hour of interview data on tape. A simple question like, “Tell me about your day as an airline pilot” once yielded nearly two hours of interview data, leaving all the other questions for another interview time. You will learn to develop a sense of awareness and timing about your participants in the study and rearrange accordingly. All these habits help to make way for the creative act of interviewing.

Probably the most rewarding component of any qualitative research project, especially oral history, is interviewing because it is a creative act and often requires the use of imagination much like the choreographer imagining what the dance will look like. In addition to those just noted, another useful habit to develop before the actual interview includes the reading of recent texts and articles on interviewing. For example, see Rubin & Rubin (2012) and Kvale and Brinkman (2008) . Oral history texts and feminist research methods texts also have described interviewing in great detail ( Yow, 1994 ; Reinharz, 1992 ; and Hesse-Biber and Leavy, 2008 ). A good deal of what can be learned about interviewing ultimately may come from trial and error within long-term oral history projects by practicing the interview act. I have defined interviewing earlier as a meeting of two persons to exchange information and ideas through questions and responses, resulting in communication and joint construction of meaning about a particular topic (Janesick, 2004). With that in mind as we are always researchers in the process of conducting a study, we rely on different kinds of questions for eliciting various responses.

The How: Active Interviewing

Many agree that the mainstay of oral history is interviewing. Interviewing is well described in all fields, but for this article I agree with those who view interviewing as a type of guided conversation ( Rubin & Rubin, 2012 ). Furthermore, I see interviewing as a creative act. Just as the choreographer must know the technique and components of a dance, the interviewer needs to prepare questions. All of us as oral historians or qualitative researchers practice our craft and get better presumably as we go. In addition, we are prepared with the latest digital equipment and have done research prior to the interview about the social context in which the interviewee is immersed. Depending on the stage of our own development as researchers, we may construct various types of interview questions.

Types of Interview Questions to Consider

Basic descriptive or help-me-understand questions.

Can you talk to me about the recent decision you spoke of earlier that gave you such stress concerning reporting child abuse? Tell me what happened following this decision. Help me understand what you meant by the statement, “They are always with me.” Basically, you the interviewer probe further into the meaning of the experience of the participant.

Structural/paradigmatic questions

Of all the things you have told me about being a social worker, what keeps you going every day? Can you walk me through a typical day? What are some of your proudest achievements? Are there days that were more difficult, and can you describe such a day?

Follow-up/clarifying questions

You mentioned that “time for meditation is important” to you. Can you tell me how you use this time? Or another example might be, “Tell me more about what you mean about your description of yourself as a ‘technology nut.’”

Experience/example questions

You mentioned that you are seeing students succeed in ways you never imagined. Can you give me an example of this success? Can you give me an example of your most difficult day during your interviews for this position? You said, “High-stakes testing is killing our school.” Can you say a bit more about this?

Comparison/contrast questions

You said there was a big difference between a great leader and an ordinary one. What are some of these differences? Can you describe a few for me? You mentioned that there is no simple board meeting, and at the same time you can almost predict what will be the point of contention at the meeting. Can you say more about this?

Closing the interview

Closing an interview is often difficult for both interviewer and interviewee.

Another good rule of thumb for this situation is to ask questions that indicate the end of the interview and also that enable the participant to keep thinking about the information already given and quite possibly look forward to another interview. Here are two solid questions for closing an interview: Is there anything you wish to add to our conversation today? Is there anything I have forgotten to ask and which you feel is important? Notice that there is always room for the participant to deal elegantly with the end of the interview in the moment with such a closing set of questions. In fact many oral historians and other researchers report that participants will later say they are still thinking about these closing questions and want to tell the researcher something that was forgotten at the time of the interview. If this occurs, there is a serious opportunity for rich data to complement the existing interview or set of interviews through a follow-up interview.

While the interview is the mainstay of oral history, many oral historians go further to augment and support the interview data. This can be done with collecting other types of data. For example, the use of demographics to develop and describe the social context is always helpful. In addition, photographs, videos, newspaper clippings of the day, and any other written documents relevant to the main themes are also useful. Documents are a mainstay and can be analyzed just as interviews are analyzed through the constant comparative method, looking for themes, and coming to some interpretation of the interviews and documents. In fact Emergent Document Analysis (EDA) has been described by Altheide et al. (2008) as a way to study and deconstruct power. In this sense, EDA moves toward a social justice orientation.

Additional helpful ideas as you design your interview project

Remember the categories of culture that affect how you frame a question, deliver the question, take field notes as the tape is recording, and ultimately how you make sense of the data.

Cognitive culture—how the interviewer and interviewee perceive their own context and culture

Collective culture—how both see themselves as part of a collective culture including gender, race, class, religion, and ethnicity

Descriptive culture—all those written works and works of art and science that have had an effect on both the interviewee and the person who takes the role of interviewer

Assumptions to be aware of while interviewing someone:

Assumption of similarities—just because you may professionally act in a role as an educator and you are interviewing another educator, do not assume similarity of thoughts, beliefs, values, etc.

Language difference—the importance of one’s own first language and the misinterpretation of meaning in other language usage is critical

Nonverbal misinterpretation—obviously we may all read nonverbal language incorrectly, which is why you interview someone more than once, for example, and why you keep coming back to find the answer to your questions

Stereotypes—before interviewing, check yourself for any stereotypes and be clear about their description in your role as a researcher

Tendency to evaluate—while most educators continue to evaluate every spoken or written word even outside the classroom, try to avoid an evaluation of the content of given remarks

Stress of interviewing—if you are stressed out, the person being interviewed may pick up on those cues. Go in prepared, use all your active listening skills, relax, and enjoy the interview

Thus we see the what and how of interviewing. But, you may ask, why do we do oral history?

The Why of Doing Oral History

For the purpose of this article, I will work predominately from a postmodern perspective to emphasize the evolution of oral history. In this perspective, oral history takes on more texture and possibly more credibility. Thus postmodern oral history is characterized by:

An interpretive approach that may include the participant in the project as a co-researcher or at least an active participant in terms of member checking the material to be included in the final report.

Both interviewer and interviewee use ordinary language in the final report to make the story understandable to the widest possible audience.

Technology is used to enhance the power of the story being told, and researchers may make multiple uses of technology and the written word to complete the story telling. Digital cameras, digital video cameras, cell phones, and other devices are regularly used as part of the narrative itself. Possible posting on YouTube or other internet site for more rapid access to a larger audience is an option. The use of blogs, wikis, social networks, and potential use of computer-assisted software for data analysis is ever present.

Ethical issues are discussed and brought to the forefront of the project and throughout the project.

Oral history is an approach to qualitative research work that continually persists and prevails and is available in public spaces such as libraries and web sites. It is one of the most transparent and most public approaches regardless of the discipline base, such as history, sociology, education, gerontology, and medicine.

Oral history validates the subjectivities of participants and is proud of it. We acknowledge subjectivity and celebrate it in order to reach new understanding of someone’s lived experience. This in turn helps us to make more sense of the human condition.

Voices and stories of those members of society typically disenfranchised and marginalized are included for study and documentation. In that regard, oral history may be seen as a social justice project.

Oral history is viewed as a democratic project acknowledging that any person’s story may be documented using accessible means to the data.

In addition, to use the metaphor of choreography to help in understanding oral history, it is helpful to understand something about the work of choreography. Not to oversimplify, but often the choreographer asks the following questions as a general beginning to any dance/art work:

Who ( or what) is doing

What to whom (or what) and

Where , in what context and

Why , what were the difficulties?

Thus oral history stands as a noteworthy approach to understanding the lived experience of any number of individuals. It is a user-friendly list of questions to guide and oral history project.

Furthermore, like the choreographer whose aim is to communicate a story of some kind to an audience, the oral historian has to communicate a story. This means that writing becomes critical for the person who is becoming an oral historian. Like the choreographer and the dancer who trains the body to perform, the prospective oral historian also is in training, particularly as a writer. In fact, writing is an athletic activity in the same way that dance and choreography are athletic activities. To write oral history, as in dance, you are engaging your mind, memory, and your body parts such as the hands, muscles, nervous system, spine, joints, eyes, ears, and brain.

Many may ask questions about why they should do oral history at all. Many wonder about the qualities that may assist the oral historian and the characteristics of oral history. In reflecting this, the following points may serve as a guideline to think about as you become an oral historian in the field and as you begin interviewing someone.

Oral history is holistic. Even if you are telling the story of a vignette of someone’s life, that vignette gives the entire picture of the vignette. Oral history takes into account the social context, the emotional context, and the big picture.

Oral history by virtue of telling a story looks at relationships. It is a people-centered occupation.

Oral history usually depends on face-to-face, immediate interactions, particularly in the interview and then later with member checking. Thus oral historians should possess good communications skills.

Oral history like all qualitative work demands equal time for analysis as the time spent in the field. Interviews do not interpret themselves. Part of the job of oral historians should be to analyze and interpret the data.

Oral history acknowledges ethical issues that may arise in the interview. Also, oral historians recognize that ethics come into play when deciding what stays in the report and what is left out. Issues of confidentiality, protecting the rights of the participant, and other such questions are always a potential reality.

Oral history relies on the researcher as the research instrument.

Oral history seeks to tell a story as it is, without reference to prediction, proof, control, or generalizability. We are researching subjectivity and proud of it.

Oral history incorporates a description of the role of the oral historian/researcher.

Oral history incorporates informed consent and release forms or any formal documentation needed to protect persons involved in the oral history.

Oral historians check back with participants as a member check to share transcripts and converse about the meaning of data.

Oral historians read widely and do all that is possible for understanding the social context of the person being interviewed. Collecting artifacts or written documents often is part of any oral history project. Having an outlook of transdisciplinarity is helpful in oral history projects. This demands awareness of more than one discipline and a deep use of the disciplines involved as a basis for the final narrative report.

Oral historians use all sorts of data. Even though oral history is a qualitative research technique, demographic information, documents, and other pertinent information may be used. Arts-based representations are useful and powerful tools for oral history projects. Photos, videos, and posting stories on social media outlets and YouTube help disseminate a great deal of oral history. Archives store multiple types of data.

Oral historians write every day and practice writing on a regular basis.

Oral historians have deep appreciation for history and the historical context, and appreciate other disciplines and what they may offer in terms of understanding oral history.

Oral historians may use the technology of the day such as the internet to learn from YouTube, blogs, written and posted diaries and journals, letters and any other documentation to tell a story. Digital oral history examples are widely available on the internet and beyond.

Oral historians may use photography and film to capture someone’s lived experience and to augment the narrative. As a result, oral historians need to use up-to-date digital equipment and software that allows for incoming data appropriate to the level of sophistication of the software.

Oral historians may decide to tell the narrator’s story using poetry, drama, or other art forms found in documents or and in the transcripts or craft their own poetry or use other art forms as well in the story telling.

Oral historians by virtue of doing oral history research are gaining knowledge and insight into the human condition by understanding some aspect of someone else’s lived experience. They also learn from the research they undertake.

This information of course is not new, but as individuals discover this for themselves, they can set about the task of becoming an oral historian. Many who shy away from oral history need not be intimidated.

Writing Up Oral History as a Narrative

In order to do oral history, one needs to be an above-average writer. Think of the great storytellers in print. Recall your favorite writer as you read this. Most likely this writer is adept at storytelling through a written narrative. In order to do oral history, a good strategy to employ in terms of writing is to keep a researcher reflective journal. By writing a journal of reflections, you clarify your position and situate yourself in the oral history. Writing the narrative story depends on the interview transcripts, any documents being analyzed, and any other supporting data sets such as photographs, demographic data, artifacts, videos, and the researcher’s reflective journal as well as any observations on the scene. These may help to fill out the context of the story. Likewise, the researcher reflective journal is a valuable tool. I have written in more detail earlier (Janesick, 1999, 2004) on the importance of the researcher reflective journal. Let us turn once again to that topic here to clarify some points on writing and the researcher’s reflective journal.

The Researcher Reflective Journal

Journal writing as a reflective research activity has been called reflective journaling and also called reflexive by many sociologists and researchers in training. It has been most used by qualitative researchers in the social sciences, education, medicine, health, business mental health, gerontology, criminal justice, and other fields since these professionals are seeking to describe a given social setting or a person’s life history in its entirety. The researcher reflective journal has proven to be an effective tool for understanding the processes of research more fully, as well as the experiences, mindsets, biases, and emotional states of the researcher. Thus it may serve to augment any oral history reporting. This inclusion of the description of the role of the researcher and any reflections on the processes of the oral history project can be a valuable data set to include any final reporting.

Many qualitative researchers advocate the use of a reflective journal at various points in the research project timeline. To begin with, a journal is a remarkable tool for any researcher to use to reflect upon the methods of a given work in progress, including how and when certain techniques are used in the study. Likewise, it is a good idea to track the thinking processes of the researcher and participants in a study. In fact, writing a reflective journal on the role of the researcher in any given qualitative project is an effective means to describe and explain research thought processes. Often qualitative researchers are criticized for not explaining exactly how they conducted a study. Researcher reflective journal writing is one device that assists in developing a record of how a study was designed, why certain techniques were selected, and subsequent ethical issues that evolved in the study. A researcher may track in a journal the daily workings of the study. For example, did the participant change an interview appointment? How did this subsequently affect the flow of the study? Did a serious ethical issue emerge from the conduct of the study? If so, how was this described, explained, and resolved? These and other such questions are a few examples of the types of prompts for the writer. In addition, this emphasizes the importance of keeping a journal on the role of the researcher and for the research process throughout the entire project, in this case an oral history project.

The inclusion of the reflective journal as part of the data-collection procedure indicates to some extent the credibility and trustworthiness of this technique. Does it not also act as a source of credibility and descriptive substance for the overall project? As a research technique, keeping a journal is user friendly and often instills a sense of confidence in beginning researchers and a sense of accomplishment in experienced researchers. Many researchers verify that the use of a reflective journal makes the challenge of interviewing, observing, and taking field notes much more fluid. Researchers who use the reflective journal often become more reflective actors and better writers. Writing in a journal every day instills a habit of mind that can only help in the writing of the final research report. In education, for example, many researchers ask participants to keep a reflective journal as well and end up relating to each other as co-researchers in a given project. In this type of work, journal writing becomes an act of empowerment and illumination for both researcher and participants.

In beginning the researcher reflective journal, it is always useful regardless of the project to supply all the basic descriptive data in each entry. Information such as the date, time, place, participants, and any other descriptive information should be registered in order to provide accuracy in reporting later in the study. Especially in long-term projects, the specific evidence that locates members and activities of the project can become most useful in the final analysis and interpretation of the research findings. Journal writing has an elegant, long, and documented history itself that is useful to recall.

Journal writing began from a need to tell a story. Famous journal writers throughout history have provided us with eminent examples and various categories of journals (see Progoff 1992 ). For example, Progoff suggests using a dialogue journal where you and I as writers imagine a dialogue going on with the self and society. In this format, one actually writes a dialogue and answers the thoughtful questions posed. No matter what orientation taken by the journal writer, it is generally agreed that reflexive journal writing is utilized for providing crispness of description and meaning, organizing one’s thoughts and feelings, and for eventually achieving understanding. Thus the oral history researcher has a valuable tool in reflective journal writing. Basically the journal writer is interacting with one’s self in a sense.

Thus the art of journal writing and subsequent interpretations of journal writing produce meaning and understanding that are shaped by genre, the narrative form used, and personal cultural and paradigmatic conventions of the writer who is the researcher, participant, and or co-researcher. As Progoff (1992) notes, journal writing is ultimately a way of getting feedback from ourselves. In so doing, this enables us to experience, in a full and open-ended way, the movement of our lives as a whole and the meaning of the oral history project. Journal writing allows one to reflect, to dig deeper into the heart of the words, beliefs, and behaviors, we describe in our journals. The act of writing down one’s thoughts will allow for stepping into one’s inner mind and reaching further for clarity and interpretations of the behaviors, beliefs, and words we write. The journal becomes a tool for training the research instrument, the person. Since qualitative social science relies heavily on the researcher as research instrument, journal writing can only assist researchers in reaching their goals in any given project especially in oral history projects. I see journal writing as a critical tool in becoming a solid narrative writer and a good oral historian.

Major Issues Facing Oral History Researchers: Digital Technologies, Ransdisciplinarity, and Social Justice

I wish to focus on three key issues facing oral historians today: First, how can we use the many digital technologies, software, and equipment more readily and in a socially just manner? Secondly, how can transdisciplinarity enrich our narratives? Third, how might we use arts-based approaches to oral history that work in a transdisciplinary way, incorporate digital arts based approaches, and arrive closer to a social justice approach to oral history? These issues may present us with a few problems. As many will attest, when doing oral history interviews, some information is shared that is basically private, the participant would like to keep it private, and video and audio materials need to be protected just as any research report in hard text would be. In other words, ethics is an overriding umbrella for oral history researchers in terms our work. At the same time, with the proliferation of social media, YouTube, and the readily available technology to use these media, the current generation of researchers seems dedicated if not glued to computers and other hand held devices that basically open up to the world what previously might have been private.

Oral History in the Digital Era: A Way to Use Arts-Based Approaches

Technology is a welcome addition to the oral historian’s tool kit. Using technology is like choreographing a dance. You start with the basics as discussed earlier and figure out a way to tell someone’s story in photographs, video, and other media. In addition some researchers use social networks such as Facebook or Twitter, blogs, wikis, YouTube, and TeacherTube to collect data and represent the data through technology. Here are some potential assistive devices for the oral historian and any qualitative researcher. By the time this volume goes to press, it is highly probable that other sites will emerge. What is happening is a move to go beyond the interview transcript(s) to make full use of the transcript(s). See the following resources and sites on the internet. for strategies that will enable the oral historian to do exactly that.

Basic Technology Tools and Trends for Inquiry

The annual Horizon Report describes the continuing work of the New Media Consortium’s Horizon Project, a qualitative research project established in 2002 that identifies and describes emerging technologies likely to have a large impact on teaching, learning, or creative inquiry on college and university campuses within the next five years (see http://wp.nmc.org/horizon2010 and http://net.educause.edu/ir/library/pdf/HR2012.pdf )

What is VoiceThread?

A VoiceThread ( www.voicethread.com ) is a collaborative, multimedia slide show that is stored and accessed online that holds images, documents, and videos and allows people to navigate pages and leave comments in five ways—using voice (with a microphone or telephone), text, audio file, or video (via a webcam). A VoiceThread can be shared with other professors, researchers, students, and the wider community for them to record comments, as well. VoiceThreads can also be downloaded as a movie file, but there is a cost for this function. VoiceThread supports PDF; Microsoft Word, Excel, and PowerPoint (including Office 2007 formats); images; and videos. VoiceThread also imports photos from Flickr, Facebook, and other websites. Each of these allows for artistic expression including incorporation of photography and video.

VoiceThread is a flexible tool that can be used for a wide variety of uses, including:

Orally publishing written work with matching artwork displayed on the slide

Uploading interviews for analysis

Describing qualitative methods and techniques in a research class

Displaying videos for comment and feedback

Art portfolios describing processes used at each step or just as a simple art gallery

Gathering perspectives on an idea or concept from participants indicating a more active role for participants

Creating an archive of interview responses.

By going to the wikis that house VoiceThread information, you can save yourself a great deal of time (see http://readingqueens.wikispaces.com/Voicethread+Directions ).

Other resources

PowerPoint presentation on VoiceThread: http://www.authorstream.com/Presentation/kcercone-299598-directions-using-voicethread-education-ppt-powerpoint/ http://readingqueens.wikispaces.com/Voicethread+Directions http://www.frenchteachers.org/technology/VoiceThread.pdf

Animoto automatically produces beautifully orchestrated, completely unique video pieces from your photos, video clips and music. See: http://animoto.com/

With this resource, you will learn to make a video from your photographs:

Tutorial: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v= tivxjNRFLaY

Sample: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u Miws3Qq5pY

By using Animoto, the oral historian starts to practice ways to merge artistic expression and the written text.

Using Wordle

By using Wordle, it is possible to create a visually stunning use of word arrangements for part of the oral history narrative. Please go to: http://www.wordle.net/

Wordle is a tool for generating “word clouds” from text that you provide. The clouds give greater prominence to words that appear more frequently in the source text. You can tweak your clouds with different fonts, layouts, and color schemes. The images you create with Wordle are yours to use however you like. You can print them out or save them to the Wordle gallery to share with others. See this example:

http://www.slideshare.net/murcha/using-wordle-in-the-classroom-presentation

Creating a Blog with WordPress to tell a story

WordPress is an open-source blog publishing application. It features integrated link management; a search engine–friendly, clean permalink structure; and the ability to assign nested, multiple categories to articles. Also multiple author capability is built into the system. There is support for tagging posts and articles. Some have made posters from WordPress to display data at conferences and other sites. In addition, WordPress is a tool that actually advertises as having beautiful graphics and photos for use. It is worth exploring (see http://www.wordpress.com )

Audacity is free shareware for recording and mixing audio tracks from different sources. You can download and install it from http://audacity.sourceforge.net . Choose an earlier, more stable version (not the beta version). With Audacity, you can capture the actual voices of your participants.

Using Animoto to convert photos into free videos

Animoto is a free video-rendering tool that can be used to create videos from photographs. It advertises that anyone can create stunning videos, a claim I believe is accurate (see http://animoto.com )

What is Animoto?

Animoto is a web application that allows you to create video clips using graphics in. jpg or. gif format. Thirty-second video clips are free, or you can pay an annual fee ($30.00) and make video clips of any length. You upload your images, add some text (optional), and select your music, and Animoto does the rest. This is a useful tool for the oral historian’s tool kit.

Using photography in oral history projects

Photography is a powerful research tool for oral historians and other researchers ( Harper, 2003 , Rose, 2007 ). Many fields recognize the value of and use of photography to augment the final narrative of any given qualitative research project. In fact to use just one example here, since many libraries are adding to their digital collections, doctoral students today can expect that they will be doing completely digital dissertations. Thus current doctoral students have the opportunity to use photography in the final product of the dissertation. Hard copies are going the way of the dinosaur for many individuals. In many fields, including oral history, researchers are using PhotoVoice as a key technique.

Photo voice is a technique used in some projects to allow participants to photograph, describe, and explain their social context, particularly groups most often on the margins of society. This project began as a way for underprivileged students and parents to capture through photography neglect, abuse, and other aspects of the social context that give witness to those on the outskirts of society. For a more involved description and examples of PhotoVoice, see http://www.photovoice.org/ .

If you do an internet search for PhotoVoice, you will find numerous articles on this activity. PhotoVoice is most often described as a process. Here people can identify, photograph, and explain their community through a specific photographic technique. PhotoVoice has various goals, including: 1. to enable an individual to keep a record and reflect a community’s strengths and concerns, such as the photographs taken after Hurricane Katrina; 2. to promote critical dialogue about community issues within a given community; and 3. Eventually to reach policymakers through the power of the photograph. A growing body of PhotoVoice examples can be found on YouTube at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=shrFa2c305g .

Since this is a visual medium, it is helpful to view these many examples for a model of what is possible for oral historians. Familiarity with many of these sites can be helpful in crafting the final narrative much like the choreographer improves her craft by photographing and making videos of segments of a dance or an entire dance performance.

Future Directions and Final Reflections

To make sense of oral history, choreographing the story we tell as historians and researchers includes art, experience, and inquiry. I return historically to the third chapter of Art as Experience , a groundbreaking text by John Dewey (1859–1952) that suggests the following:

Experience occurs continuously because the interaction of live creature and environing condition is involved in the very process of living. [p. 35]

And while Dewey speaks about this in theory as a philosopher, choreographer Erick Hawkins (1909–1994) writes in the here and now of an actual dance in progress. Hawkins wants us to see the body as the perfect instrument of the lived experience:

Several times so called critics have judged the dancers of my company as being “too graceful.” How can you be too graceful? How can you obey the laws of movement too much?... The answer is a kind of feeling introspected in the body and leads one into doing the correct effort for any movement. The kinesiological rule is to just do the movement... The tenderness in the mind takes care of the movement in action. [1992, pp. 133–134]

Similarly, Hawkins wrote,

One of the reasons we are not accustomed as a culture to graceful movement is because we do not treasure it. The saying among the Greeks of the Athenian supremacy was that the body was to be treasured and great sensitivity was used in the observation of movement. They treasured the body by having many statues of deity... maybe they understood that the body is a clear place. [1992, p. 134]

We can learn from these writers as we look ahead to our qualitative oral history research projects. We can see the lessons here

We learn about the critical importance of experience, curiosity, imagination, and the resulting artifact, the oral history narrative, is layered and connected.

We learn about the power and value of the subjective experience in interpretation of the oral history interview and documents, and these may be artistically rendered.

We learn that the landscape of feeling and emotions cannot and should not be avoided when expressing art or artifact. In fact, these are embraced in oral history.

For researchers to “have the experience” of telling someone’s story, the researcher, must acknowledge the experience component of empathy, understanding, and the story itself. The oral historian must be prepared with the best possible tools and techniques of our craft.

We celebrate narrative storytelling in whatever form it may take but appreciate the visual options through digital media and arts-based approaches to storytelling.

Because we are bombarded by images through multiple forms of media, it makes sense to use multimedia to effect a powerful story by use of photography, video, and other arts based approaches to assist in using our research to move toward a more socially just world.

We can feel comfortable in returning to a true appreciation of storytelling, a space from which oral history derived.

One of the reasons I do qualitative research and specifically oral history is that it is multifaceted and may include more than one art form, such as writing and photography. In fact, I see oral history as an art form itself. It is through the arts that a larger audience is most likely reached than any other curricular or cultural arena. The arts can meet the need of nearly every person, no matter who that person is and no matter where that person is in the world, and so there are social justice implications. The current digital revolution is filled with art, dance, music, poetry, collage, and other art forms stored in the vast digital archives of Google and YouTube. Oral history helps us understand the power of experience, art as experience, and artifacts resulting from the experience—all of which transcend the day-to-day moments of life. In fact, storytelling is its own art form. As we tell stories about the lived experiences of our narrator, art illuminates that experience. To me, using poetry, photography, and video whenever possible helps to widen the repertoire of techniques for anyone who wishes to become an oral historian and document and interpret a story. So it seems to me that, as we practice oral history, we ourselves keep a digital record, a reflective record, and move ahead to carve out our place in the inquiry process as we are building a record of lived experience.

Three Questions for the Field

To conclude this piece, here are three questions for oral historians to think about in terms of shaping the future directions n the field.

How might our work be used to advance a social justice project?

How might we think about arts-based approaches to improve our practice, how might we work in a transdisciplinary way to augment the oral history interview.

One of the strengths of oral history is that a diverse and multicultural knowledge base is built through the use of oral history interviewing. To use just one example, truth commissions across the globe, there is a steady stream of documenting injustice. Thus this ironically can lead us to more of a movement toward social justice. By way of explanation, think about the critical testimony of the victims of apartheid in South Africa. Here, the South African Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) was the major vehicle for capturing what occurred throughout this difficult period. Ordinary citizens came forward and faced their abusers. They gave long interviews, all of which are recorded, and the perpetrators of the various crimes asked for forgiveness. The person being interviewed had to forgive the individual. Torturers, murderers, and transgressors admitted their crimes, and they were interviewed as well. There was an understanding that, once the testimony was given by both parties, forgiveness was given, the case was closed and both/all parties moved on. Desmond Tutu was the originator and overseer of the TRC. He wrote of the experience ( Tutu, 1999 ). What these testimonials as oral history gave us was a powerful understanding of the cultural, political, emotional, and psychological aspects of apartheid as never before. Furthermore, we see the agonizing tales of brutality and its aftermath. It was an example for the world of what is possible and how to move toward social justice at least in these overt, clear cases.

As oral historians, we see how, when, where, and why people were able to recount their stories. Tutu (1999) reminds us of what he calls his four types of truths. He first describes factual or forensic truth, or the actual evidence of what occurred. Second, he mentions the personal or narrative truth of the interviewee. This was the story told by the witness giving testimony. Thus we have the actual human story and the description of the lived experience, which is the goal of oral history. Third, Tutu describes the social or cultural truth, that is the context of what occurred historically and up to the present. Here, this may also include the forensic and personal truth. Finally, he describes the restorative or healing truth, which is describes as what is needed to heal the wounds of the three previously outlined truths. So testimony as oral history becomes a way to move toward social justice. Obviously this is a unique case and one the entire world was updated on as the hearings unfolded. Yet in the everyday lives of those we live and work with, there are many injustices that may be documented through oral history methods.

While writers have already outlined many arts-based approaches to qualitative research, it makes sense to use arts based approaches to enhance the oral history narrative. For example, many possibilities for arts-based approaches include using readily available digital technology for photography and videos as described earlier in this piece. In addition, using performing arts such as playmaking and reader’s theater to augment data presentation offers us many opportunities to integrate arts-based approaches to oral history. I want to focus on another type of arts-based approach: found data poetry and other forms of poetry. Found data poetry is poetry found in the data itself, such as interviews and documents from the site of the study. This means using words found in the data and also making poetry from the meaning of the text. Poetry offers us a new way to look at our data and a new way to express it. See the following short example from a transcript of an oral history project I am currently completing on oral histories of female leaders. In this excerpt, a female school assistant superintendent is from a north central state explaining one of the challenges in a particular case regarding attempted censorship of a middle school reading text. The text covered a story about a young ostracized obese student who contemplated suicide but actually realized he was good at music, so he threw his energy into music. It is actually a story of redemption, not about suicide, which students appreciated. However some fundamentalist parents tried to mount an email campaign from around the United States and Canada to object to this optional text on the summer reading list. Following this excerpt, which was used as an example of how leaders deal with the public, you will see poetry constructed from the interview.

Sample excerpt from a transcript of an interview with a female assistant superintendent of schools in a north central state Q: Think about yesterday and today, not necessarily as typical days, but what does your day look like? Tell me about the things you deal with. A: Well, it’s been atypical days so that’s... And that’s something I’ve been thinking about. There isn’t... There are typical days and they’re boring. The typical days are the days when you’re sitting and working on paperwork for the state and working on budgets and trying to analyze test scores to make them meaningful to the teachers and to the... and whatever. So those are the typical boring days. This is our second week of school so there’s no typical beginning of the school year. Now I’m spending more time supporting teachers, right now new staff. Right now I’m doing... pulling on my Special Ed background. I have a little guy who is in one of our self- contained classrooms but he’s struggling with the transition coming back to school and mornings aren’t good for him and he’s got a new teacher. And the principal in that school is on maternity leave. And the principal who is filling in was a little panicked. And so we met and talked about strategies for this little guy that, no, you know in first grade he’s not ready for therapeutic day school. He’s not hurt anybody. Everything’s fine. It will be okay. We have a controversy going on right now related to curriculum materials that have been selected for students’ optional use, optional reading. So we’ve been laughing and... on one hand... and cringing on the other because we’re responding to one parent’s concern. We have only heard from one parent who has a concern about a book that was on the summer reading list. Kids take home a list of six or seven books that are optional. The kids give a synopsis of the book at school. They talk about them. And if you don’t like any of those books you can read any other book in the whole wide world to choose from. And this one is as much young adult literature is -has controversial themes because it gives us the opportunity to support kids as they worry about these things. Q: Can you tell the name of the book? A: It’s Fat Kid Rules The World by Kale Going. And the themes really are friendship, not giving up, perseverance. A student in there contemplates suicide. He’s had a very tough time. His mom’s died from cancer. His dad’s an alcoholic. He’s in an abusive home situation. And he is befriended by a homeless teen who is a gifted guitarist who asks this kid to join his band and play the drums. And it basically is about acceptance and you know it’s a great story of Redemption. It’s a wonderful story. And the parent that objects is objecting based on the proliferation of the “f” word. And it is in there and it... kids are in Brooklyn. And interestingly enough, but it’s not really spoken out loud. It’s in this kid’s thoughts. That she’s objecting to the normal sexual fantasies of teenagers. He’s describing a person and saying no not this one, not the one with the large breasts you know the other one... physical features. So you know things like that. This parent has you know not accepted that the fact that her child was not required to read the book and... She did not ask for the book to be banned from the library. I think she just asked for it to come off the summer reading list. However that has snowballed to some right-wing web sites... Concerned Women for America, the Illinois Family Network. I don’t know which all... Save Libraries.org. And we have been getting interesting e-mails from basically all over the country and Canada. Q: What would be an interesting e-mail? A: Oh some that are saying... One was, you know, “If I knew where Osama Bin Laden was, I would turn him in but first I would tell him where your school was so that he could bomb it. Hopefully when there was no children... on the weekends when no children were present.” You know, “You’re responsible for the moral degradation of children and the increase in rapes and murders and school shootings because children have read... because we have forced children to read this book.” Q: Have you been threatened or has anybody? A: I have not personally been threatened. The junior high Principal has been threatened. You know “When someone comes and murders your family, it’ll be because of how you taught them.” Rather interesting. No one from the immediate community... No other parents in the community... There’s an article in today’s paper, we had a prepared statement to share with people who called anticipating... And we did end up sending a note home today you know saying that you know we didn’t believe that the threat was really credible but that we did have, you know, that there was a police presence. ... It was on the book list for incoming 8th graders, so that would be 13 and 14 year-olds. They talk about these things. And some statistic that I had recently come across said three to five... Three out of five teenagers contemplate suicide at one point. So, um... yeah, it’s kind of important to maybe say, yeah, there’s a place to talk about this. It was... It’s probably towards the young end of the age spectrum that the book might be appropriate for. And we did have a parent come and talk in support of the book. Her student had read it during 7th grade. He’s a very capable student. And as a parent she also read the book and thought it was a perfect avenue to discuss some of these difficult situations.

In this example, we have many options for creating poetry to describe the content of the issues at hand and the emotional meaning. Here is an example of poetry written by Jill Flansburg (2011) , who read the transcript and created this poem:

Parents misconstrue Parent Misconstrue The teachers, the kids the book. Narrow mindedness. Poise under pressure Never a typical day But I really care... Parents find fault Intolerant of teachers And the kids miss out.

You can see the power of the poem. It makes us think in new patterns and see something in the data that inspires poetic form. Poetry becomes a way to see possibility and hope in our work. Poetry allows us to say things that may not have been said or that makes us notice what exactly has been said. Poetry becomes a method of discovery and a powerful technique in one’s toolkit for oral history. It is evocative and personal. Many poetry sites on the internet and many poetry blogs may even be used as a way to analyze, interpret, and disseminate data in digital formats. Poetry as data presentation is one meaningful strategy for the oral historian. This goes beyond the actual interview.

I like to think about ways to make oral history more accessible. Thinking about digital technologies, poetry, and social justice as contextual, it makes sense to think about what other disciplines might teach us. For years, researchers have been writing, thinking, and talking about triangulating data. We also have seen many writers discuss cross- and/or interdisciplinary approaches to research. For example, social sciences and health sciences may have researchers who team up to study obesity. Medical and educational researchers may team up to study AIDS education programs. But the question then becomes how deeply this collaboration might occur between and among disciplines? A new development has occurred recently in terms of thinking about transdisciplinarity.

Historically Jean Piaget most likely was the first to introduce transdisciplinarity around 1970. In the 1980s in Europe, interest continued in this area, and in 1987 the International Center for Transdisciplinary Research adopted the Charter of Transdisciplinarity at its first world congress. See the Charter of Transdisciplinarity at http://basarab.nicolescu.perso.sfr.fr/ciret/english/charten.htm .

Basically this charter calls for conducting research with a holistic approach by crossing disciplines and going deeply into the union of the disciplines while designing research that is problem based. Currently many European research centers such as those in Switzerland, Germany, and France appreciate and use this approach. In many ways, it is like choreography for it shares many characteristics, and in choreography the artist uses at least two disciplines deeply imbedded in each other: dance and music. For example, the choreographer mentioned earlier, Merce Cunningham, worked with composer John Cage (1912–1992) on a lifetime of collaboration in dance and music performance. They were able to create deep meaning from this collaboration in performance, in critique, and in developing new projects.

For oral historians, transdisciplinarity can work effectively as oral historians may use two or three disciplines imbedded in each other. For example, in my current research I use education, history, and sociology to examine the oral histories of female leaders. In order to go beyond the transcripts of interviews, transdisciplinarity offers us much to work with in terms of research design, analysis, and interpretations (See Hirsch et al. 2008 , Leavy, 2011 ). In addition, this approach is well suited to qualitative approaches in general history, and particularly in oral history. I see this as a steady progression toward a more integrated, unified, socially just, artistic, and rational approach to our work. In closing, let me ask that we think about going beyond the interview through the use of arts-based approaches to presenting data, that we consider through the use of the digital tools available how we contribute to social justice through our work, and that we appreciate the value of transdisciplinarity in our work.

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Oral History Interview Essay Example

Pages: 6 (1648 words)
Published: May 28, 2017
Type: Case Study

A Guide Doing an oral history interview is a fantastic way to learn about the past. From a screen historical perspective, it gives you unique and valuable insight into the way the movies have changed. And it gives you a fun, “real-world” opportunity to compare the movie-going of yesteryear with the experience we know today. What’s the best way to go about conducting an oral history interview? Today we’ll take you through the process, step-by-step, for conducting an interview for use in Assessment Item 1, the Interview-Based Report.

Step 1: Preparation

Good preparation is essential to getting the most out of your oral history interview.

Start by asking yourself some key questions – What do I want from this interview? What is the primary data I need for comparison in my report? What do I need in order to prepare myself prope

rly for this interview? Identifying what it is you’re looking for will help you to frame your enquiry better, and locate the best interviewee. In your Preparation phase, it’s a good idea to develop some draft questions geared towards getting you the answers you need.

Step 2: Locating the Interviewee

What you’re looking for in an interviewee is someone who:

A) Has been to the movies prior to 1975

B) Has a good memory and can recall those experiences

C) Is a good talker and able to share those experiences with you in the interview.

Many students find the best interviewee for their Interview-Based Report is a family member, or close family friend. Ask around and see if there’s anyone your friends and family can suggest. Someone who loved going to the movies will almost always make for a great interviewee! Another optio

is to seek ut someone who was involved with the movies – a cinema projectionist, cinema manager or owner, or even an usher or usherette, who can share with you their special insights about what movie-going was like in their day.

If you’re having trouble locating an interviewee amongst your immediate friends and family, you may like to seek an interview with another member of your community – a justice of the peace, a librarian, people working in bookstores or involved with community organisations such as Rotary, who may be able to help you with your moviegoing interview.Consider putting a notice on a community noticeboard or in the newspaper, and you should have no trouble with finding someone to talk to! Remember – not only does this assignment offer really exciting potential for your communications research skills, it’s amazing how much this activity of talking to someone about times gone by, can broaden your mind, and help you appreciate and understand, the recent past.

Step 3: Pre-Interview

In the pre-interview stage, you should contact your interviewee and tell them what you plan to talk to them about.This gives you a chance to ensure that they can recall the material you’re seeking details about, and also serves to kick-start their memories of those experiences you want to hear about.

Develop your questions using the ones suggested in the Unit Outline, remembering that you should ask plenty of questions in order to have a rich bank of raw material to analyse in your Report. It’s up to you how many questions you ask, and it’s good idea to have more than you think you will need in case your interviewee can’t

answer some of them.Most students go into the interview “armed” with between 20 and 30 questions ready to ask! What form should an interview take? There are several ways you can conduct an interview that will provide you with detailed information for your discussion. In general, giving an interviewee a questionnaire to fill out, either on paper or over email, is adequate, but not ideal – it doesn’t give you much space to follow up with the interviewee, is dependent on their written communication skills, and will result in brief comments that are less useful for integrating into your analysis.

Researchers only use a written questionnaire as a last resort, or a first stage, for interviewing. An in-person interview can take place face-to-face, over Skype or another video-chat program, or over the phone. Face to face and over video chat are ideal because they allow you easily record the interview on your mobile phone or another device and also to pursue follow-up questions as they come up in your discussion. Another option is to use an instant messaging system like Facebook or Gmail Chat.This has certain advantages, in that the material is already written and saves you time in transcription and, being live, allows you pursue other lines of investigation with follow up.

But it also has certain disadvantages, chiefly that many older people aren’t familiar with these sorts of programs, and that the process itself depends on someone being able to articulate themselves rapidly through typing. Most people are better at talking about their experience, than typing or writing, so an in-person oral history interview is still the ideal way to do your interview for this

assignment.Before you undertake your interview, your preparation should also include checking through your questions and testing your recording equipment (if doing an in-person interview). Remember that batteries can and will always fail at the most inconvenient time - so ensure you have spare batteries if using a sound recording device, and make sure your phone is fully charged.

Do a couple of playback tests to ensure that the sound is clear enough for you to use in your analysis. Remember the motto – Victory Loves Preparation!

Step 4: Interview

When it comes time to conduct your interview, remember to start by thanking your interviewee for their time and assistance with your assessment item. It always helps if show that you are genuinely interested in their experience - and will mean you get better material, so make sure you smile and make your interview subject feel valued at the outset of the interview. Do a playback test to ensure your equipment is working (and remember to check on the recording device regularly during the interview process to ensure it’s still going! . Have your interview questions printed out and in front of you so that you can refer to them and make notes during the process.

It helps if you start the formal interview by reminding the interviewee that you’re looking to hear about their experiences of going to the movies prior to 1975 and give them a sense of the broad areas you’ll be exploring in the interview. Then begin by asking them to state their name, and the first cinema they can remember attending, or their first memory of going to the movies. Or, you can help to

the ball rolling by asking them about the first movie they can recall seeing, and take things from there. Again, remember that you are looking to gather more raw material than you can feasibly use in your analysis – it’s far better to have more than you need and have the luxury of choosing your strongest material for analysis, than to feel you’ve got to scrape together an essay discussion from not very much interview data. Don’t worry if you ask a few questions that don’t seem to relate to the work we’re studying in the course, since these may prove useful later in your discussion anyway.

Be alert during their responses – and try to follow up if your interviewee seems to have more to say on a subject, or recalls something interesting. It’s a good idea to be flexible, and be prepared to stray from your fixed agenda if you think it will help you get the best material! Above all, during the interview, be listening out for comments that you know you can relate to the course material studied when it comes to doing your analysis in the Report.

Step 5: Review and Transcribe

After you’ve completed the interview, it is essential that you review the interview material as soon as possible, while it’s fresh in your mind. Try not to leave it more than a day as the sooner you revisit it, the better you will be able to work with it. When you revisit the recording, don’t transcribe everything – rather, listen through it and make a log or list of key timecodes where interesting or useful discussion occurs.

Then you can go back

and use these logged moments when you are writing up your analysis.You only need transcribe the relevant parts of your interview when you’re preparing your essay discussion in order to show that you’re quoting correctly and to show your marker how you’ve worked with this raw material in your comparative analysis. Reviewing is also essential to ensure that your recording hasn’t encountered any glitches and that you can hear the interviewee’s responses clearly enough to work with them later.

Step 6: Courtesy and Follow-up

The final step in your interview process should be to follow up with your interviewee with a brief phone call or even a thank you card.This is a key part of any interview protocol as it shows you are grateful for the person’s time, and it’s a thoughtful touch that will always be appreciated.

It’s a nice idea to let them know when you’ve finished your essay and are submitting it, and you may want to offer them a copy so they can see how you’ve used their experiences in your discussion. Above all, remember to be courteous and considerate throughout your dealings with your interviewee – not only is it a good habit to be in, but it will ensure you get the best material possible to work with in your Interview-Based Report!

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Oral History: Oral History Projects and Examples

Best Practices
Interviewing
Oral History Tools
Oral History Projects and Examples
TCTC Oral History Project
Research and Writing Basics

Examples of Oral History

After the Day of Infamy: "Man-on-the-Street" Interviews Following the Attack on Pearl Harbor Features a wide diversity of opinion concerning the war and other social and political issues of the day, such as racial prejudice and labor disputes.
Black Oral History Collection Civil Rights Digital Library, Digital Library of Georgia
Civil Rights History Project at the Library of Congress An ongoing oral history collection with relevance to the Civil Rights movement to obtain justice, freedom and equality for African Americans conducted through the Library of Congress
Civil Rights in Mississippi Digital Archives From the University of Southern Mississippi. Use the search tool to find several examples of oral history transcripts as well as other primary sources.
Densho Oral History about Mass Incarceration of Japanese Americans during WWII Slide backgroundOral history interviews, photos, newspapers, and other primary sources that document the Japanese American experience from immigration through redress with a strong focus on the World War II mass incarceration.
Documenting the American South The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Explorations in Black Leadership: Oral History Interviews Institute for Public History, University of Virginia
Nevada Test Site Oral History Project The Nevada Test Site Oral History Project at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas is a comprehensive program dedicated to documenting, preserving and disseminating the remembered past of persons affiliated with and affected by the Nevada Test Site during the era of Cold War nuclear testing.
Occupational Folklife Project An ongoing oral history project meant to document the culture of contemporary American workers during an era of economic and social transition, including interviews with workers in scores of trades, industries, crafts, and professions.
South Asian Oral History Project The SAOHP represents one of the first attempts in the U.S. to record pan-South Asian immigrant experiences, reflecting religious, linguistic, occupational and gender diversity and provide rich insight into changing experiences of South Asians.
Southern Journey Oral History Collection This collection of oral histories, completed from 1991 to 1994, contains narratives of 119 individuals describing the activities and people involved in the Civil Rights Movement in the southern states of North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Alabama, Florida, and Mississippi.
Southern Oral History Collection This is a collection of oral histories about Southern life as collected by the University of North Carolina.
Story Corps Since 2003, StoryCorps has collected and archived more than 45,000 interviews with nearly 90,000 participants and is one of the largest oral history projects of its kind.
Veterans History Project The Veterans History Project of the American Folklife Center collects, preserves, and makes accessible the personal accounts of American war veterans so that future generations may hear directly from veterans and better understand the realities of war.
Voice/Vision Holocaust Survivor Oral History Archive Search Promotes cultural, racial and religious understanding through unprecedented worldwide access to its collection of Holocaust survivor narratives.
Voices from the Days of Slavery Almost 7 hours of interviews recorded between 1932 and 1975 in nine Southern states. 23 interviewees, born between 1823 and the early 1860s, discuss how they felt about slavery, slaveholders, coercion of slaves, their families, and freedom. They have much to say about living as African Americans from the 1870s to the 1930s, and beyond.(Library of Congress)
Groundswell: Oral History for Social Change "A network of oral historians, activists, cultural workers, community organizers, and documentary artists that use oral history to further movement building and transformative social change."
Voices of Feminism Oral History Project The Voices of Feminism Oral History Project documents the persistence and diversity of organizing for women in the United States in the latter half of the 20th century. Narrators include labor, peace, and anti-racism activists; artists and writers; lesbian rights advocates; grassroots anti-violence and anti-poverty organizers; and women of color reproductive justice leaders.
Web of Stories Listen to some of the greatest people of our time telling their life stories, from Stan Lee to Doris Lessing telling stories about their lives and their achievements.
“Telling Their Stories” – Oral History Archive Project of the Urban School Read, watch, and listen to student interviews of elders who witnessed key historic events of the 20th century.

Testimonies of the 9/11 Attacks

Oral Testimony from Survivors of the World Trade Center Attack From The 9/11 Encyclopedia The events of September 11 are almost impossible to comprehend, but the best testimony to the horrors of that day comes from the survivors. These survivors witnessed acts of heroism and selflessness along with panic and desperation.
Eyewitness Account of the Pentagon Attack From The 9/11 Encyclopedia The attack on the Pentagon has received much less attention than that on the World Trade Center or the crash of United Airlines Flight 93, but it was still a major attack. Casualties were high, with many of the survivors suffering bad burns. Lieutenant Colonel Ted Anderson's account gives an idea of what happened on September 11 at the Pentagon.
Account of Events on United Airlines Flight 93 From The 9/11 Encyclopedia Of all the events on September 11, the hijacking of United Airlines Flight 93 was the most dramatic because of the heroic reaction of its passengers. Realizing that the hijackers were on a suicide mission, the passengers attempted to regain control of the aircraft. The fact that they failed to save their own lives does not diminish their effort. Here is the account of Tom Burnett's role in the effort to regain control of the airliner.
Dog Handlers at Ground Zero From The 9/11 Encyclopedia Finding survivors in the wreckage of the World Trade Center was a daunting task. Dog teams were indispensable to that effort. As days passed, the searchers could only hope to find bodies and body parts so that the victims could be identified and their families could have closure. The dog teams were even more critical to these later efforts. It was hard on the dogs, but they performed admirably.
President George W. Bush's Address to the Nation (September 11, 2001) From The 9/11 Encyclopedia Americans were in a state of shock on September 11, 2001. The unthinkable had happened: a terrorist attack on the United States had killed thousands of Americans. President George W. Bush had been as startled as anybody else in the United States. In this speech, which he gave on the evening of September 11, 2001, he tried to reassure Americans that their government was going to help in the recovery and deal with the terrorists.

Vietnam War Interviews

President John F. Kennedy’s Remarks on the Situation in Vietnam From Encyclopedia of the Vietnam War: A Political, Social, and Military History
Ho Chi Minh: Replies to an Interview with Japanese NDN TV From Encyclopedia of the Vietnam War: A Political, Social, and Military History

Personal Accounts regarding Conspiracy Theories in the U.S.

A Short Narrative of the Horrid Massacre in Boston From Conspiracy Theories in American History
Nat Turner, Confessions From Conspiracy Theories in American History
Charles Chiniquy, Fifty Years in the Church of Rome From Conspiracy Theories in American History
Lee Harvey Oswald, “Historic Diary” From Conspiracy Theories in American History

Oral History Videos

Descriptions and Recollections of Labor in the U.S.

Emma Goldman: Excerpts from Her Autobiography From Historical Encyclopedia of American Labor
Eugene V. Debs: Excerpts from His Statement Upon Sentencing for Violation of the Espionage Act From Historical Encyclopedia of American Labor
The Lawrence Strike, 1912: Excerpt from the Autobiography of Big Bill Haywood From Historical Encyclopedia of American Labor
Flint Sit-Down Strike: Excerpt of 1976 Interview of Genora Johnson Dollinger From Historical Encyclopedia of American Labor
Forty Years in a Steel Mill: Studs Terkel Interviews Steelworker Steve Dubi From Historical Encyclopedia of American Labor
An Insider's View of the Fair Employment Practices Committee: An Interview with Earl B. Dickerson From Historical Encyclopedia of American Labor
Persecution of the Industrial Workers of the World: “Big Bill” Haywood's Description of the 1919 Murder of Wesley Everest From Historical Encyclopedia of American Labor
Real-Life Rosie the Riveter: Excerpt of Augusta Clawson's Experiences as a World War II Shipyard Worker From Historical Encyclopedia of American Labor
Stella Nowicki: Interview with a Meatpacking Plant Worker, 1973 From Historical Encyclopedia of American Labor
Terence V. Powderly: Excerpts from His Autobiography From Historical Encyclopedia of American Labor
Voluntarism: Excerpts from Samuel Gompers's Autobiography From Historical Encyclopedia of American Labor
Excerpts from Samuel Gompers's Testimony before a U.S. House Committee upon the Relations between Labor and Capital From Historical Encyclopedia of American Labor
Triangle Fire: Excerpts from the March 1911 New York Times Account of the Fire and from an April 1911 Speech by Rose Schneiderman From Historical Encyclopedia of American Labor
Sweatshops: Excerpt from Louis Levine's Description of Turn-of-the-Century Abuses in Garment-Industry Sweatshops From Historical Encyclopedia of American Labor
Textile Workers: Excerpt of Testimony before the U.S. Senate by John Hill From Historical Encyclopedia of American Labor
Gilded Age Social Conditions: Testimony before the U.S. Senate Committee upon the Relations between Labor and Capital From Historical Encyclopedia of American Labor
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How the Trumpeter Jeremy Pelt Became a Chronicler of Black Jazz History

Inspired by the drummer Arthur Taylor’s “Notes and Tones” collection of interviews with fellow musicians, Pelt started his own book series, “Griot.”

A person with a goatee, in a dark pinstripe suit with a red pocket square in front of a yellow wall.

By Hank Shteamer

The trumpeter Jeremy Pelt was sitting on his couch, browsing YouTube, when he decided to become an author.

It was 2018, and Pelt, by then a fixture on the New York jazz scene for two decades, came across a 1994 interview with the jazz drumming great Arthur Taylor , conducted by a fellow percussionist, Warren Smith. “It could have been ‘Batman,’ or something,” Pelt recalled during a recent conversation in his Harlem apartment. “It was like an hour and 45 minutes, I remember, and I just was transfixed the whole time.”

Pelt was especially taken with a section where Taylor discussed “Notes and Tones,” his landmark book of musician-to-musician interviews, first self-published in 1977 and later reissued more widely. In it, giants like Miles Davis, Nina Simone and Max Roach spoke with often bracing candor about race, the music business, their feelings about the term “jazz” and more. Pelt had first come across the book more than 20 years earlier at the Berklee College of Music library.

“This is way before internet and all that,” he said, so listeners had no idea what their musical heroes’ “comportment was, how they sounded, anything. So what you have is these words that gave you this peek into their personality.”

Pelt often found himself wishing for a sequel. Taylor noted in the 1993 paperback edition that he had recorded more than 200 interviews and intended to publish a follow-up; two years later, he died at 65 . Watching the conversation between Taylor and Smith, Pelt made a resolution: “After wondering how come somebody hasn’t done such and such, I said, you know what? I’m going to go ahead and do it.”

He started conducting interviews with elders, peers and younger artists, accelerating during the pandemic, when it was easy to reach musicians via Zoom. In 2021, he self-published the first volume of “Griot,” settling on that title after seeing the term — meaning a West African storyteller-musician who passes down the oral history of a tribe — in an old social-media handle used by the bassist Buster Williams. “I looked it up, and that’s when it hit me,” Pelt, 47, said. “That’s exactly what this project is, is really passing down the culture. It’s these stories.”

The book features 15 conversations with musicians across generations: Warren Smith, now 89, whom Pelt chose as his first subject after watching his interview with Taylor, as well as Wynton Marsalis, Terri Lyne Carrington and Robert Glasper. Since then, Pelt has issued another three books, self-published annually through his Peltjazz imprint in runs of about 200. (Vol. IV arrived in February.) Taken together, the “Griot” books, available in the United States only through Pelt’s website and mailed out personally by the author, read like a secret history of the jazz life from bebop to Black Lives Matter.

Jazz literature is filled with artist interviews conducted by journalists and critics, but examples of musicians speaking with their peers on the record are relatively rare. As the bassist William Parker said in 2022 — speaking about how “Notes and Tones” had inspired “Conversations,” his own continuing series of books featuring interviews with fellow artists — “when musicians talk to musicians, they speak differently.”

For Pelt, that camaraderie was key. At the outset of the “Griot” project, he said, it was clear “what was needed to really do something like that was a significant level of trust from musician to musician,” something he had built up across his 20 years on the scene, working with esteemed veterans such as Cedar Walton, Louis Hayes and James Moody, and consistently leading his own bands. (His latest album, “Tomorrow’s Another Day,” came out in March.)

When Pelt selects his subjects, he makes a point of reserving space for “older Black musicians that had not had a lot of ink” — he referred to them as “the soldiers of this music” — who appear alongside more well-known names such as Esperanza Spalding, Christian McBride and Wayne Shorter. Some of the books’ most revelatory conversations are with underrecognized mainstays of the scene, including the multi-instrumentalist Earl McIntyre, the trumpeter Kamau Adilifu (a.k.a. Charles Sullivan) and the tuba player Bob Stewart.

Stewart, 79, said in a phone interview that he was honored to be included among the “Griot” ranks. “I take it as a badge of courage somebody just handed me,” he said. “Because it’s what I’ve been doing my entire last 60 years, teaching school and playing professionally and then taking my playing and passing it back on to students that are now young players.”

The saxophonist and singer Camille Thurman, 37, featured in the third “Griot” book, said Pelt has captured “a lot of good wisdom.” “It’s one thing when somebody’s asking questions based off of what they’ve seen from the outside, or what they’ve seen put together nice and neat on a piece of paper,” she added. “When musicians come together and talk, there’s something that’s really deep about it.”

Pelt’s interviews take many paths, but one question is a constant, often eliciting passionate responses: “What is the significance of being a Black jazz musician?” In Vol. IV, the pianist Eric Reed answered, definitively, “You don’t have jazz music without Black people.” In Vol. III, the harpist Brandee Younger replied, “I think that in this art form, it’s significant because we as a people created the music. So it’s important that we not be erased from it.”

As in the original “Notes and Tones,” racism is a frequent theme, whether it’s the 89-year-old saxophonist George Coleman recalling being turned away from a Maryland diner during the Jim Crow era or the 25-year-old saxophonist Isaiah Collier reflecting on what he called the “modern lynchings” of Trayvon Martin, Breonna Taylor and others.

Pelt said he knew from the outset that his series, like Taylor’s book, would feature exclusively Black musicians. Citing the influence of a mother who assigned him extracurricular Black history homework growing up and grandparents who recorded and preserved their own oral histories, he said this common factor “had to be the glue that holds it all together.”

In “Griot,” Vol. I, the pianist Bertha Hope, 87, identifies herself as “a proud Black woman in an industry where Black women have had to struggle for a seat at the table.” In a phone interview, she said that sharing her story with Pelt felt validating. “There’s just so many ways we as Black musicians have been overlooked, and we haven’t really been asked what we think about situations or what our lives have been like or what the impact of the industry has been on our career,” she said. “I think it makes a huge difference because he’s part of the music, he’s part of the jazz community, and he also is interviewing people who look like him.”

Pelt realizes the urgency of documenting musicians’ stories while he still can, and regrets that he wasn’t able to include the saxophonist Jimmy Heath and the trumpeter Roy Hargrove before their deaths. He dedicated the second “Griot” title to the pianist Harold Mabern and the drummer Ralph Peterson Jr., both of whom died before their interviews appeared in that volume.

Pelt said he has often been asked why he didn’t simply start a podcast or a YouTube series, rather than going through the effort of publishing a physical product. “I’ve always viewed podcasts as being fleeting,” he said. He gestured around to his library of LPs, which dominated his living room, and said he was looking for that kind of permanence, to create something that, hopefully, “you could always come back to.”

For emphasis, he picked up a copy of a recently published jazz hardback from his coffee table. “There’s no batteries in this,” he said. “It’s not going to die.”

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How the trumpeter Jeremy Pelt chronicles Black jazz history.

IMAGES

Oral History Interview Essay Example
️ How to write an oral history paper. Oral History Paper. 2019-02-04
HIST 2321 Oral Interview Essay
Appendix B: Oral History Transcript Example
📗 Oral History Essay Example
Oral History Interview with Celeste Williams, November 13, 2014

VIDEO

10 lines on a visit to a historical place in english/essay on a visit to a historical place
Pma 153 initial interview most important and repeated essay topics
PMA 153 Initial interview
Oral History Interview
Oral history interview video by Jeremy Nahuel
Oral History Interview with Barbara Byers

COMMENTS

Oral History
When an oral history essay places the experiences of an individual within the context of a historical period, it can help illuminate both the individual's experience and the historical period. ... A transcript of an oral history interview is, in the words of one style guide, "at best an imperfect representation of an oral interview ...
How to Do Oral History
After the Oral History Interview. 1. Download interview files onto your computer, following the instructions provided. 2. On your computer, rename each file by right clicking on file and selecting rename. Rename it in this format: LastnameFirstname_Date_Interview#_File#, for example, JonesSandra_04-30-2020_1. 3.
Oral History Interview Project: [Essay Example], 621 words
Oral History Interview Project. Oral history interviews are an essential tool for preserving and documenting the experiences, memories, and perspectives of individuals who have lived through significant events in history. This essay will explore the significance of conducting oral history interviews as a method of capturing personal narratives ...
PDF Oral History Interviewing Guidelines
1. Oral History Interviewing Guidelines. • An oral history is involves sustained listening. Listen closely and attentively to what the narrator says and then build on what they say with questions that allow them to give examples, context, clarification, etc. • An oral history interview is about the narrator, not the interviewer.
Conducting an Interview
The following online resources also contain sample questions to use or consider during your oral history interview: Family History Sample Outline and Questions, UCLA Library Center for Oral History Research. Exploring and Sharing Family Stories, Read Write Think. Oral History Question List with Downloadable Question Cards, UNC University Libraries
Step-by-Step Guide to Oral History
Usually ask questions open enough to get "essay" answers unless you are looking for specific short-answer "facts." ... for definitions and explanations of words that the interviewee uses and that have critical meaning for the interview. For example, ... Oral History in the Secondary School Classroom. Pamphlet Series #2. Los Angeles: Oral ...
Stage 1: Preparing for the Interview
Preparing for an oral history interview is perhaps the most important step in the oral history process. Once you have decided upon a topic or event in history, you will need to locate a narrator (also called the interviewee) whose experiences are relevant to your topic. ... For example, if you wanted to learn more about a politician, you might ...
Oral History Project Guide: The Interview
Background Research. Prepare for the interview by: draft a short biographical introduction of your interview subject; do background research on the time period or event you want to explore; make a list of open ended questions to ask during the interview; select the location of the interview; prepare any recording devices you plan to use for the ...
Research Guides: Getting Started with Oral History: Home
Oral history is a method of conducting historical research through interviews. It is also a way to gather, preserve and interpret the voices and memories of people and communities relating to past events. The term "oral history" can refer to the act of creating a recorded testimony. It can also refer to the materials produced in an interview ...
Guide to Conducting Oral History Interviews (Comprehensive)
Conduct oral history interviews with immediate family members. Take time to interview and compare your memories with those who have direct knowledge about the person. This can include siblings, parents, cousins, grandparents, and others. Oral history is about people, who they were, and the stories of their lives.
UCLA Library
An oral history interview is not about the interviewer. The focus should be on the interviewee, and he or she should do most of the talking, with occasional questions from the interviewer to guide the interview in the most productive directions. In general, a chronological organization is usually the best structure for an oral history interview.
Planning an Oral History Project
For example, you could: Add videos or recordings to public platforms like YouTube, Vimeo, the Internet Archive, SoundCloud, or others. ... Narrators are people who share their first-person accounts in an interview. An oral history project rests upon the narrators' memories: through their testimonies, they actively add their experiences to the ...
The Interview
Interview habits. Oral history interviewing can be elevated by good habits or diminished by poor ones. In Oral History for the Local Historical Society (see the box below), Willa K. Baum provides a number of very useful guidelines for interviewing. Mostly common sense, these points are also worth keeping in mind: Encourage your narrator to relax.
Top 20 Oral History Interview Questions & Answers
My approach has consistently allowed narrators to feel heard and respected, often leading to a more open and authentic account of their experiences, which is invaluable to the integrity and depth of the oral history record.". 20. Share an example of how you've used oral histories to impact social change or policy.
Interview Guide
Start the interview with a statement of who, what, when, and where you are interviewing. For example, "This is (your name). It is May 25th, 2020, 3 pm. I am with professor … via the online platform Zoom and we are beginning our oral history interview". Explain the purpose of the interview and how you intend to use it.
PDF Three Ps of a Successful Oral History Interview
attending the interview, and a brief statement of purpose. The ID tag should be recorded as you begin the interview. For example: "Today is Tuesday, April 14, 2009. This is John Smith with the Center for Oral History and I am interviewing Mrs. Jane Doe about her Hurricane Katrina experience. We are at her home in Gulfport, Mississippi.
Oral History Interviewing: Issues and Possibilities
Oral history interviewing is a viable qualitative research orientation for many qualitative researchers in various disciplines. Oral history is the collection of stories, statements, and reminiscences of a person or persons who have firsthand knowledge of any number of experiences.
Oral History Interview Essay Example
Oral History Interview Essay Example 🎓 Get access to high-quality and unique 50 000 college essay examples and more than 100 000 flashcards and test answers from around the world! ... A Guide Doing an oral history interview is a fantastic way to learn about the past. From a screen historical perspective, it gives you unique and valuable ...
Oral History Projects and Examples
The Voices of Feminism Oral History Project documents the persistence and diversity of organizing for women in the United States in the latter half of the 20th century. Narrators include labor, peace, and anti-racism activists; artists and writers; lesbian rights advocates; grassroots anti-violence and anti-poverty organizers; and women of ...
Oral History Essay
Oral History Of Oral History Paper. Hua 1 Dang Hua Professor Mary Anderson American Studies 101 27 September 2015 Oral History Paper The subject of my interview is a 68 year elderly Vietnamese man named Minh "Bi" Ngo. Mr. Ngo has white long hair, a medium long white beard and a distinctive mole on the bottom of his left eye and a thick ...
Oral History Interview Example Free Essay Example
Oral History Interview Example. Mrs. Cooper: My mother and father came from two different areas of Alabama. My mother grew up on the Morrisette Plantation in Alabama. We know that my grandmother was a servant there in 1880.
PDF Oral History Basic Information FINAL (1)
On your computer, rename each file by right clicking on file and selecting rename. Rename it in this. format: LastnameFirstname_Date_Interview#_File#, for example, JonesSandra_04-30-2020_1. 3. Click on file to be sure it plays properly. 4. Do not erase files from your computer until you have made duplicates. 5.
How the Trumpeter Jeremy Pelt Became a Chronicler of Black Jazz History
Pelt often found himself wishing for a sequel. Taylor noted in the 1993 paperback edition that he had recorded more than 200 interviews and intended to publish a follow-up; two years later, he ...

Oral History

Introduction

Who uses oral history projects and why

Preparing for the interview

Conducting the interview

Transcribing oral histories

Turning the raw material into an essay

Decisions you’ll need to make about your project

If you answered A., that you want your essay to transcribe the comments of the individual, consider the following questions and responses

If you answered B., that you want your essay to present the experiences and/or perspective of the individual, consider the following questions and responses

If you answered C., that you want your essay to place the individual’s experiences and/or perspective within a larger historical or social context, consider the following questions and responses

If you answered D., that you want your essay to use the individual’s experiences and/or perspective to make an argument about a larger historical or social context, consider the following questions and responses

Works consulted

Oral History Interview Project

Table of contents

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Oral History Toolkit

Background Research

Oral History Project Guide: The Interview

The Interview

Background Research

Release Forms

Conducting the Interview

Guide to Conducting Oral History Interviews (Comprehensive)

1.What Are Oral History Interviews?

What are the types of oral history interviews?

2. What I Learned in the First Ten Oral History Interviews

Conduct oral history interviews with immediate family members

Oral interviews provide opportunities to locate family records

3. How to Begin Preparing for the Oral History Interview

Who should I include when writing an individual or family narrative?

Who should I interview for the narrative?

4. Oral History Interview Considerations

How many people should I interview at a time?

Should I audio record or video record an oral history interview?

Do I need to record the oral history interview?

What type of equipment do you need for a telephone oral history interview?

Can I use video conference software like Zoom for remote oral history interviews?

What do I need to know about digital recorders?

Can I use an analog tape recorder for recording the oral history interview?

What should I use for microphones when conducting an oral history interview?

Should I use batteries, wall plugs or others with my recorder?

What should I use to carry my recording equipment?

5. How to Set-up the Oral History Interview

How do I ask someone about participating in an oral history interview?

How do I prepare for the oral history interview?

6. How to Correct Oral History Recording Noise Problems

7. Getting Ready for the Oral History Interview

Should I try to conduct the oral history interview in one setting?

Do you ask all the oral history questions on your list?

What kind of last-minute preparations do you do for an oral history interview?

8. How to Conduct an Oral History Interview

Where should I set up an in-person oral history interview?

What should I say in the oral history introduction?

How should I set up my equipment and resources for the oral history interview?

How close should the microphone be?

Is there anything I should record before I start the oral history interview?

What are the best practices for conducting the oral history interview?

9. Use Open-Ended Questions in Oral History Interviews

What type of questions should I ask in an oral history interview?

Where can I find oral history questions that have already been developed?

Can you provide examples of oral history interview questions/outlines?

Married Life and Children

Middle Age and Toward Retirement

Personal Philosophy about Life in General

10. How to Get the Best Answers in Oral History Interviews

What are some best practices for conducting oral history interviews?

What should I do after an oral history interview is completed?

Are there any copyright issues related to oral history interviews?

Is there a form I can use for an Oral History copyright agreement?

11. How to Take Care of Recorded Oral History Interview

What should I do with an oral history interview digital recording?

What should I do with an oral history interview taped recording?

Should I create a transcript of every oral history digital recording?

What is the best way to transcribe an oral history interview?