On Friday, April 11, a brand new museum – the "Newseum" – opened in Washington, D.C. I found this article in the Washington Post and it immediately piqued my interest. The Newseum, a $450 million venture, focuses on the science and history of media and journalism. After reading the article and viewing the associated video clip, I found this to be very relevant in light of our recent class discussions on science museums and science centers.
Public interest in the Newseum was extremely high – the article describes how, for most of the day, the line to get in stretched around the block, and the Newseum reached full capacity around 2 p.m. Something interesting that I took away from the article was that this museum really encourages family learning and discussion. From the article:
“Visitors tried their hand at editing, reporting and photographing stories through video simulators that praised or scolded them for their news judgment. "Mom got us fired!" said Alex Leicht, 13, of Pine Brook, N.J., after his mother chose a not-so-compelling photograph of a dramatic water rescue for the front page of her virtual newspaper.”
This excerpt also alludes to another concept we discussed in class – the emphasis on learning via direct interaction with exhibits which (among other things) distinguishes "science centers" from “museums.” The Newseum is certainly considered by its creators to be a museum, but with 15 interactive studios – including one in which visitors can create their own television newscasts – it certainly has some aspects of a science center. Take a look at the article and video…do you think the Newseum is more a museum, science center, or an equal blend of both?
Friday, April 18, 2008
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I feel the inclusion of the 15 interactive studios will stimulate interest in news reporting in a wide variety of audiences. For example, a particular studio may strongly appeal to an individual who had little background in news reporting or its history. The individual could develop a new interest in news reporting and, consequently, appreciate the non-interactive exhibits throughout the museum. Moreover, the studios will be a great way to introduce children to news reporting, while allowing parents to observe history they may be familiar with.
I agree, the interactive studios definitely allow people to experience, learn, and perhaps be inspired. They offer an interesting look behind the scenes of something we see everyday, but might not give to much thought about. Also, it'll be interesting to see how the high admissions fee to the museum will affect it in the future. We talked a bit in class about how much someone is willing to pay for entertainment, and some of the people interviewed in the article disliked the $20 price tag.
I also quickly questioned if the "Newseum" can actually be called a museum or if it aligns more with a science center where hands-on interaction is emphasized. While I think there is an interative component, it appears to fit more with the museum mold.
It's hard to compare this facility with a science museum but I image given the wide scope of the news, curators have an extensive collection to display and only chose to present a small percentage of the most memorable news stories. Even so, I am curious about what sort of research is being conducted behind the scences and if the exhibitions will be rotated, which are two components more characteristic of a museum.
I am also curious about the exorbinant cost of this museum within a city of free but boundless Smithsonian museums. What sort of crowd that will be attracted? How will the presence of this city shape the education and tourism focus of Washington, D.C.?
This sounds more like a science center than a museum to me. Very cool though! It is interesting that a channel of communication is communicating about the history of other channels of communication. That's something to wrap your head around. My family will be in D.C. this weekend. Maybe I will encourage them to check it out and get back to you about what they think.
I'm curious how long the price will stay that high. I can understand why--15 interactive studios? Yea, that would cost a lot of money to make. But as the article mentioned, a woman took 3 kids with her to the museum. $20 for herself, $13 for the kids, and $42 for lunch. Someone made a good point...this museum is not too far away from the Smithsonian Museums which ARE free to the public. I'd like to know the logic behind those who created the museum. What kind of research did they do to decide on such a creation? How did they factor in the high price?
One thought about the cost: many people thought that the spy museum in DC (www.spymuseum.org) would also fail because of its cost ($18/person, ages 12-65). But it's been amazingly popular.
I remember going to the Newseum right before they closed it for renovation. It was really cool and I am excited to see the changes they have made. When I went they had a lot of ways for people to interact with the exhibits, like a fake-news broadcast that you could do.
The post article talks about how the newseum emphasizes the glory of journalism, and I remember that this was the case when I went to visit about 6-7 years ago. The part of the museum that stuck with me the most was an exhibit listing American journalists who died while covering war zones.
I think it will also be interesting to see how the media partners who contributed to the project will influence what goes in and stays out of the museum.
Overall I think the Newseum seems a bit too pop-culture to seem like a museum or a science center to me.
I definitely agree with the argument that the "Newseum" seems more like a science center than a museum. The exhibits with newspaper copies and artifacts (like the heavily damaged World Trade Center broadcast tower and the news helicopter) are collections typical of what is commonly known as a museum. However, as many have already emphasized, there are 15 different interactive centers in this one building. These centers offer hands-on activities related to the media and journalism science knowledge presented. Dr. Lewenstein explained in class that "activities" are a distinguishing feature of science centers. In the article's description, as well as the video's description, these activities are emphasized. The "Newseum" seems to suggest that the activities are defining features of their "museum." The 15!!! clearly well-developed and intricate interactive centers in the "Newseum" really make it seem more like a science center than a museum, although the building has characteristics of both. Although, I want to see and explore the "Newseum" thoroughly by visiting the place to make sure that this science center over museum argument has as much merit as I think it does.
Another interesting question to bring up is if the newseum depicts journalism, or the process of journalism. Similar to our talk earlier this semester of describing "science" or "about science," this newseum seems to be a combination of the two. On one hand, it describes the behind the scenes action in journalism, but the interactive components allow visitors to be "on-set."
The reporter's explanation brought up this point clearly when he said, "It's the latest news about the news" and then later on, "You do the news at a place all about the news"
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