For YEARS She Recorded Everything on TV

Dean Docs
Dean Docs
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Published 2024-06-03
Meet Marion Stokes. In 1979, Marion began recording TV 24/7, capturing sitcoms, news and everything in between. She was determined to preserve television history that networks were constantly erasing to save money and free up storage space. As a former librarian and activist, Marion was passionate about access to information. She sometimes had as many as eight tapes spinning away at once. Even getting her family in on the act. “We’d be out at dinner and we’d have to rush home to swap tapes” recalled her son Michael. By the time she passed away in 2012, Marion had amassed about 71,000 tapes - the only comprehensive collection preserving this period in television media history. Now, the Internet Archive is digitizing her incredible work to make it publicly available. Marion's vision of universal access to knowledge will finally be realized, thanks to her tireless effort of secretly recording everything for thirty years. #foundmedia #internetarchive #internethistory
All Comments (21)
  • @DeanDocs
    "Secretly?" - To clarify: Her family and friends knew about the recordings, but she kept them private due to past government surveillance of her political activism. This caution likely stemmed from her and her first husband's attempted defect to Cuba. As a new YouTuber, I aim for accuracy and will be more careful with potentially ambiguous statements in the future. Thank you for helping me improve my content. -- There is much more to Marion and her story! Check out the great documentary about her life titled Recorder: The Marion Stokes Project. dir. Matt Wolf, where most of this footage is from. I'm unable to link in a Short but her collection (thus far) can be found if you Google "Internet Archive Marion Stokes Collection."
  • @sarahessley1323
    She owned 7 apartments to store them all. She could afford the apartments because she was an early investor in Apple. She’s a great woman beyond the tapes as well.
  • @kevztunz
    I don't know if people realize just how important this archive is. This woman deserves all the awards.
  • @evok2691
    People like her are what helped kids who couldn’t afford stuff growing up like me “acquire” things online through Archive or Torrents. I know that wasn’t her goal but her efforts make her one of my hero’s.
  • @kloroform1681
    "Those in power are able to write their own history." BIG facts 💯
  • @tomb613
    Yet another American woman whose work and dedication to the truth should humble us all. Marion Stokes is a national treasure and deserves to be recognized for her gift to history and the world.
  • @user-gb9xq6lc3p
    I can't believe tv stations weren't already doing that. thank you to this woman!
  • @justinbieber8028
    These are the kind of people that historians in the future will absolutely love.
  • @oktagon4546
    Bless her! That is genuinely a great way to fight for your rights! Nobody is hurt, no property is damaged, not one person suffered and all of this while still protesting, leaving a legacy AND therefore helping others after her. Nice.
  • @jonigomez7250
    She did not want them to be able to change history, but the act of giving them the tapes to digitize, is exactly how they’re going to change it. They will say “ see it happen just like this” and we won’t realize that they have done it… again!!
  • @Chesh89
    And she is now, herself, part of this important history. She's the reason we get to have this footprint, thank you to her and her family for their efforts to preserve and inform.
  • @ramudaamemura_
    This is why archivists and those who search for lost media are so important to the history of digital media. I have only praise for this woman's dedication.
  • @StormyHotwolf88
    I'm super impressed by this woman. I hope she gets a lot of recognition!
  • @danimunf
    She deserves her own documentary, museum, or even more than that
  • @smode983
    She recorded my entire childhood. Born in 79. All of those commercials and news stories and shows that made up my life. I'm here for it and can't wait to have access to it!!!
  • @robertwolfgan
    You have to call it "The Marion Library" when it's available for the world.
  • @RicqwanRDK146
    She’s very relatable. Just the urge to capture and document everything for informational and historical purposes, I feel that 100% 💯