In some cases archives restrict access to certain materials or even entire collections. Restrictions can include:
-Preventing access to certain materials for a set amount of time;
-Preventing certain groups from viewing sensitive materials (especially in the case of sensitive religious or cultural records);
-Preventing paper materials from being digitized or made available online.
There are a number of reasons why archival records must be restricted, some of them include:
-Donor Agreements: Some donors place stipulations on their materials when they donate them to an archives. For example, a donor might not want their collection opened to researchers until after their death.
-Privacy Laws: Certain legislation prevents archives from making sensitive information available to researchers for a period of time. Some of these laws include the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPPA) and the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA). Similarly, U.S. Census records are restricted for seventy-two years before they are made public.
-Classified Information: Some materials are classified by the government because they are considered sensitive. U.S. citizens can appeal to the government to release classified information through the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). Similarly, certain corporations might classify information for a period of time-- this is particularly true for pharmaceutical companies.
-Unprocessed Collections: Some archives might restrict access to unprocessed collections because archivists have not yet had the chance to screen the materials for sensitive information.
What is Copyright?
Copyright law protects authors of original works in any form, whether it be literary, dramatic, artistic, musical, etc. This protection applies to both published and unpublished materials. The holder of the copyright has exclusive ownership of the work and must give others written consent to reproduce their work; distribute copies to the public; perform the work; display the work in a public space; or benefit monetarily from the work. A copyright is usually held by the creator(s) of the work or their heirs. Copyright can also be transfered to other parties.
In some cases copyrighted materials can be used for educational purposes without consent from the copyright holder, this is referred to as fair use. Educational purposes include non-commercial instruction; non-commercial study used to further knowledge in a particular field of study; presentation of researcher findings at a non-commercial peer seminar.*
Copyright and Archives
Archives must abide by copyright laws. Even though an archives physically owns a document or object does not mean they necessarily own the copyright to them. A donor might sign over their copyright once they donate them to an archives, however this does not apply to materials they did not create. The researcher is responsible for determining who is the copyright holder and acquiring permission from them to publish or distribute the materials.
For more information on copyright and primary sources visit the Library of Congress' website. Click here.
*"Copyright and Fair Use." Stanford University. Accessed February 29, 2015. http://fairuse.stanford.edu/overview/academic-and-educational-permissions/non-coursepack/.