WASHINGTON, DC
BIG NEWS
BY JOHN MCCLOSKEY
Perhaps you get stock quotes sent to your smart phone on an hourly basis. If you drive to work, you listen to the news during your commute. If you take the train, you read the paper. Before bedtime, you recap the day’s events with your local TV news or a half-hour of CNBC, Fox News or CNN. In this sea of information overload, the need for a world-class museum of news might seem strange. You’ve got all the info you need, so why build the Newseum, a museum of—that’s right—news?
It’s a question that the Freedom Forum first faced when it opened the original Newseum in Arlington, VA, in 1997. In spite of many naysayers, visitors came—more than 2.25 million by 2002—even though it was well off the circuit of DC-area tourist attractions. Spurred by that success, the Freedom Forum decided it was time to move downtown. In 2000, it acquired one of the last large properties available near the National Mall and started work on the new Newseum, which is scheduled to open on April 11.
The original Newseum was a place for engaged consideration of the news. The latest one will be, too—albeit with 250,000 square feet of space. “Context is key,” says Mike
Fetters, Newseum’s spokesman. “It is a place to reflect on the media in its entire context. It’s part archive, part science museum and part cultural museum.” It is also in some ways a Hall of Fame of Journalism.
The exhibits range from the whimsical, like blogger Ana Marie Cox’s turquoise slippers—a reference to the relaxed dressing habits of those who write for the internet—to the thought-provoking, like the largest collection of Pulitzer Prize-winning photographs ever assembled. There are video displays that show hundreds of hours of archived interviews with reporters, photographers and editors. The tools of the trade, from the famed Speed Graphic camera of the early 20th century to the Bell Jet Ranger Helicopter, the preferred chopper for local TV news teams around US—are also showcased. The helicopter dangles from the ceiling of the vaulted atrium.
The museum’s physical center focuses on state-of-the-art electronic media, from creation to consumption. There is an HDTV production studio large enough to host town hall-style political meetings, with a window that affords a breathtaking view of the US Capitol. “We are already fielding requests from television networks that would like to use the studio during coverage of the 2008 presidential election,” Fetters says.
This studio is only a few feet from the Walter and Leonore Annenberg Theater, a screening room that one-ups the IMAX experience by adding tactile sensations to the show for a fourth dimension of perception. Audience members can feel the wind on their faces, the floor shake or the sensation of rats crawling around their feet.
In keeping with the ephemeral nature of news, the Newseum will change every single day. With this dynamic of ever-transforming exhibits, it hopes to attract a wide variety of visitors with different levels of interest in the news media.
A 2007 survey by the First Amendment Center reports that 34% of Americans believe the news media enjoys too much freedom. The Newseum is an attempt to combat this attitude. While the apparent prying by reporters into the sordid corners of public and private people’s lives can be off-putting to many, journalism continues to serve a critical purpose in a free society.
In an attempt to illustrate that fact, one of the largest artifacts in the museum represents one of the biggest stories of the past 50 years: the fall of communism, represented by portions of the Berlin Wall and a guard tower that once served as a checkpoint on the East Berlin side. This artifact makes clear the need for news in a free society and dramatically illustrates the power of information to transcend physical boundaries and other tools of totalitarianism. Even such a grotesque barrier as the Berlin Wall couldn’t silence President Reagan’s historic demand: “Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall.” For communism in Eastern Europe, the rest, as they say, is history.
The plainest statement against any creeping desire to reign in the freedom of the press is expressed on a 74-foot slab of marble. “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances.” It’s the text of the First Amendment, rendered in larger, more permanent type than perhaps even Thomas Jefferson would have imagined.
FEATURE STORIES
The Newseum boasts an impressive list of attractions, from the informative to the interactive.
INTERNET, TV AND RADIO GALLERY News travels faster than it did a decade ago. This gallery focuses on electronic media, how broadcasting has changed in the past 70 years and the future of media.
ETHICS TABLE How would you fare as a journalist confronted with an ethical dilemma? Test your moral compasses against hypothetical situations journalists have faced over the years. At the end, see how you measure up against the pros.
GREAT BOOKS GALLERY Displayed under glass are important books that have driven the culture of the press since the start of publishing. What distinguishes the Newseum’s collection is that it has digitized pages so visitors can electronically “turn” them.
WORLD NEWS GALLERY Newsgathering varies from place to place. Find out how reporters work under the constraints presented when they aren’t protected by their country’s constitution or are operating under the threats posed by a dictatorship.
JOURNALISTS MEMORIAL In 2007, 92 journalists and reporters died around the world while trying to report the news. This is a monument to the their efforts and the freedoms they exercise while trying to keep you informed.
NEWSWORTHY DC
THE DC MUSEUM LANDSCAPE IS MASSIVE AND EVER CHANGING.HERE ARE SOME FAIRLY RECENT UPDATES TO WHAT’S OUT THERE.
THE NATIONAL MUSEUM OF THE AMERICAN INDIAN
The oldest cultures in the Americas are celebrated in this Smithsonian Institution museum. Its four floors, three exhibit levels and thousands of square feet are home to the artifacts of all the indigenous nations that occupied the Americas before and after European settlers arrived. www.nmai.si.edu
NATIONAL AIR & SPACE MUSEUM STEVEN F. UDVAR-HAZY CENTER
Home to the Smithsonian’s growing collection of historically significant aerospace artifacts, this opened as an annex to the main Air and Space Museum in 2003. The centerpiece is the space shuttle Enterprise, which stands among aircraft that include the fastest plane ever put in active use. www.nasm.si.edu/udvarhazy
INTERNATIONAL SPY MUSEUM
Take a peek at another info-gathering trade: espionage. The museum features all the real-life gadgets, like tiny cameras, shoe phones and electronic bugs. For added fun, participate in Operation Spy; shadow government officials and risk assassination while taking in the exhibits. www.spymuseum.org