Participating in the past : recording lives in digital environments

The profile of oral history research has grown dramatically over the past two decades. One of the reasons for this is that there has been a diversification of modes of public access and delivery. The increasing use of digital media means that oral histories are now reaching far greater audiences, and these histories are being presented in more direct, more stimulating and richer ways than have before been possible. In fact, the digital revolution is rapidly transforming history as a genre and set of practices, and oral history is a key player in this process. Because oral histories lend themselves to digital forms of delivery much more readily than conventional, text -only, representations of history, oral history has come to be a central focus for digital history researchers. While it is clear that historical representation is undergoing changes as a result of the new challenges and opportunities presented by the digital environment, as yet it is less clear what the implications are for history as a discipline and as a set of practices.