SLIS Jobline Your Source for Professional, Pre-Professional, and Internship Positions

Special Projects Assistant, WGBH Media Library and Archives, Boston, MA

Posted May 10, 2016

Are you a recent master’s graduate interested in metadata and audiovisual archives? Do you have a passion for public broadcasting and want to ensure its preservation and access well into the future? Then I encourage you to apply for the position of Special Projects Assistant at WGBH Media Library and Archives! 

Job Title: Special Projects Assistant 

Department Overview: The Media Library and Archives (MLA) establishes the policies and procedures for the access, acquisition, intellectual control, and preservation of WGBH’s physical media and digital production and administrative assets. The MLA also offers production organization of archival materials from projects start up to shut down, research services, rights clearances, and licenses WGBH stock footage. 

The MLA goal is to promote the efficient and effective use and re-purposing of the WGBH physical and digital assets. 

In 2013, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting selected the MLA, in collaboration with the Library of Congress, as the permanent stewards of the American Archive of Public Broadcasting. The mission of the AAPB is to preserve and make accessible a digital archive of public television and radio content.

In 2015, the Council on Library and Information Resources awarded the MLA with a grant to build a national catalog for the National Educational Television (NET) collection, the first project to build upon the initial AAPB grant from CPB.

In 2015, the Council on Library and Information Resources awarded the MLA with a grant to digitize, preserve and make accessible the archives of PBS NewsHour’s predecessor programs, adding this collection to the AAPB.

Job Description Summary: The employee in this position is responsible for the application of professional archival principles and practices to National Educational Television (NET) Collection Catalog Project, the PBS NewsHour Digitization Project, and various other assignments involving the WGBH Media Library and Archives and the American Archive of Public Broadcasting.

Job Description:

NET COLLECTION CATALOG PROJECT (40%)

  • Creates and enhances descriptive and administrative metadata to make robust PBCore xml records describing NET programs
  • Researches additional resources containing information about NET programs
  • Transcribes scans of analog resources for inclusion in metadata
  • Writes regular blog post about project activities and NET programs of interest to raise awareness about the project.

PBS NEWSHOUR DIGITIZATION PROJECT (45%)

  • Catalog titles digitized in the PBS NewsHour Digitization Project
  • Process proxy files, uploading to Sony Ci
  • Gather and process NewsHour transcripts and rundowns
  • Identify titles that contain third party footage from Independent Television News (ITN)

AMERICAN ARCHIVE OF PUBLIC BROADCASTING (15%)

  • Add digitized material from first 40,000 hours to the Online Reading Room, when time permits
  • Use techniques for batch processing and addition of metadata for first 40,000 hours, when time permits

GENERAL

  • Makes presentations on projects to community, professional, or scholarly audiences, as requested
  • Maintains an awareness of current library and archival issues and trends 

Degree: MLIS or similar degree required

Skills and Experience Required (internships are considered experience!):

  • Experience creating and managing metadata in XML
  • Familiarity with metadata standards including PBCore, EBUCore, and PREMIS
  • Understanding of rights issues related to audiovisual materials and experience applying 17 U.S.C. 108 and 17 U.S.C. 107 in archival practice and decisions
  • Familiarity with digital library systems and architecture such as Hydra, Fedora, Blacklight, Solr, MySQL
  • Familiarity with video editing tools
  • Ability to effectively express ideas and information verbally, and in writing
  • Ability to prepare written reports
  • Passion for public media and its history
  • Passion for audiovisual archives
  • Attitude that contributes to positive workspace culture

Term: This is a one-year position.

Compensation: $31,411 – $36,000 

Apply here:  http://www.wgbh.org/about/employmentOpportunities.cfm

WGBH is an equal opportunity employer. The community and audience we serve is diverse, and we wish to foster that diversity in our workplace. Toward that end, WGBH does not discriminate against individuals in hiring, employment or promotion on the basis of race, religion, color, sex/gender, gender identity and gender expression, age, marital status, national origin, sexual orientation, citizenship, handicap or disability, veteran or military status, political belief, pregnancy, genetic information or any other characteristic protected by law.

Professional Job Listings in New England