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SUMMARY:The Timbuktu Manuscripts: Economic\, Political and Scientific Stak
 es. Some  Reflections about a Media Buzz - Professor Jean-Louis Triaud\, p
 rofesseur émérite\, Université de Provence\, Aix-Marseille I
DTSTART:20140127T170000Z
DTEND:20140127T180000Z
UID:TALK49428@talks.cam.ac.uk
CONTACT:Judith Weik
DESCRIPTION:The media exposure of the Timbuktu Manuscripts during the rece
 nt years\, still boosted by the recent events in the city after its occupa
 tion by armed groups\, is a subject that deserves the attention of histori
 ans.\nThe current celebration of these manuscripts makes them much more th
 an just heritage resources or tools of knowledge. They become carriers\, i
 nstruments\, of a new myth of Timbuktu. The ‘mysterious city’ has beco
 me something of a sacred cave\, holding mysterious forgotten texts. It is 
 the revelation of ‘hidden things’\, or so supposed\, which arouses the
  public's enthusiasm. There’s no question here to diminish the interest 
 and value of these documents\, but to consider these uses of the past by t
 he media. \nThe origins of this media hype can be traced back to an Americ
 an television series of the 1990s on PBS\, the U.S. public television\, wh
 ere Henry Louis Gates Jr.\, a professor of African Studies at Harvard Univ
 ersity\, presented the  ‘Wonders of the African world’\, including the
  manuscripts of Timbuktu. A larger public suddenly discovered historical r
 ealities hitherto only known to specialists. Fundraising have increased fo
 r the rehabilitation of Timbuktu and its manuscripts\, the Ford Foundation
  having played a major role in this field. The campaign also attracted the
  interest of the UNESCO\, which had already been involved in the past\, an
 d that of different states\, including South Africa.  This media coverage 
 has also lent credibility to ‘fantastic numbers’. \nOver the press art
 icles and medias\, the number of the manuscripts of Timbuktu has known tre
 mendous increases ( from 100 000 to 700 000 and 1 million)\, with no real 
 base of calculation.\nThe scientific results of these media campaigns are 
 ultimately limited. Talking about the manuscripts\, making them promotiona
 l items is one thing\, making a systematic and rational scientific exploit
 ation of these documents is another thing. Moreover\, the scientific work 
 already begun for many years (at Northwestern University especially) do no
 t really interest media\, in search of  mysteries and dramatization. \nDo 
 the recent media campaigns facilitate and promote research or act as a div
 ersion ? This will be our final question.\n
LOCATION:Seminar Room S1 Alison Richard Building\, 7 West Road\, Cambridge
  CB3 9DT
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