[tablespoon]

> Libraries used to keep archives of old newspapers and publications on microfilm, and anyone who needed to research something could go and look through those archives. The IA holds a similar function today - but it's the only one with its breadth and age.

Newspapers very frequently maintain and provide public access to their own online archives now. That's also not a function the IA is even especially good at--its coverage is spotty, and unless you have an old URL, it's very hard to find stuff in the IA.

The one unique thing the IA does is have is a broad and deep collection of internet ephemera.

[thaumasiotes]

> Newspapers very frequently maintain and provide public access to their own online archives now.

This is actually the worst way to preserve newspapers. There are two major problems:

1. It's their own content. Sometimes they find old content embarrassing and hide it.

2. Sometimes newspapers shut down. When that happens, the archive disappears! This defeats the whole purpose of archival.

[TimTheTinker]

> The one unique thing the IA does is have is a broad and deep collection of internet ephemera.

That's what I was referring to. Blogs especially are an important source of historical information from this period that will not exist in newspaper archives -- and many of those have appeared and disappeared in the last 20 years. IA is the only record we have of much of that.