About the Multimedia Archives

The Multimedia Archives contains a variety of formats for audio, moving, and still images. Because many audio-visual formats are old or rare, they must be accessed through digital copies. Unlike audio-visual material, most photograph prints can be viewed in person with proper handling. The Multimedia Archive is dedicated to preserving its collections and making them accessible to the public. In addition to providing access in the Special Collections Reading Room, an ever-growing selection of digitized materials is available for access online.

Each fully processed collection has a finding aid available to browse or search on Archives West. Finding aids are inventories that list all of the boxes and folders in a collection; some, but not all, also contain descriptions of individual items. For help with researching on Archives West or other platforms, see the video guides , check the subject guides below, or contact us for research support. 

Many, but not all, digitized collections are available to search and browse on the Digital Library. The Digital Library also hosts many images from other Utah organizations, but Multimedia Archivists can only assist with material in our collections. Some digital collections are restricted and can only be accessed on campus, through a research computer available in the Reading Room, or by requesting access files for research. Other places to research and explore our collections digitally include:

• Digital exhibits
• YouTube
• Legacy exhibits

Processed collections that are not digitized may be accessed in the Special Collections Reading Room, which is open by appointment. Some collections may not be immediately available if they require digitization to access. To allow for retrieval and delivery of collections, appointments should be requested at least two business days in advance. Researchers who are unable to visit should contact us for assistance and review our guidelines for reproduction and usage.

Groups and classes may view material in Special Collections classrooms with a subject matter expert or request teaching sessions; requests for groups should be submitted several weeks in advance to allow for scheduling and availability. To learn more about our hours and request an appointment or distance research assistance, visit the main Special Collections web page .

The Multimedia Archives can provide digital reproductions for private use or research purposes. For reproduction requests of 10 or under, fees are waived. After 10 reproductions, there is a cost of $0.25 for each item. Reproduction requests are placed in a queue in the order all paperwork and payment (if applicable) is received; turnaround for regular requests is typically 4-6 business days.

To request reproductions, fill out and submit a Reproduction Request using the contact form on the main Special Collections website. Reproduction requests should include the collection name, number, and item number. If an item is on the Digital Library, a digital version of the request form can be submitted through the Digital Library by clicking on the link beneath each file that reads “Request Archival File or Update Item Information.” Photographs and  audio-visual collections have some differences in reproduction procedure: 

• Photograph reproductions:  Photograph reproductions require the item number,  a unique identifier beginning with “P.”  Reproductions of photographs are currently limited to 50 scans per project due to high demand. 
•  Audio-visual reproductions:  Due to the need for specialized equipment for digitization,  audio-visual materials may require an extended timeline if the material requested is not already digitized. There is no reproduction fee for access files for new  audio-visual digitization, but turnaround is between 1-3 months.

The Multimedia Division cannot accommodate requests to rush orders. To inquire about the time it will take for reproductions to be completed, please contact us . 

To display, distribute or publish requested material in any way, we also require a Use Agreement. Use Agreements must be filled out per project. There is no additional fee for usage. If not accompanied by a reproduction order, this form should include a list of the specific items intended for usage. To minimize paperwork, we encourage researchers to fill out their Use Agreements at the end of a project, when all final selections have been made. 

The Use Agreement is not a licensing document; Special Collections does not claim to control copyright for all materials in the collection. It is the responsibility of the user to obtain permission from the copyright holders of archival material. Copyright Guidelines are available for more information and resources on conducting copyright research or assessment. 

All use of Marriott Library Special Collections material should be cited. Provide attribution of the use of Special Collections materials with the following language: “Special Collections, J. Willard Marriott Library, The University of Utah”

For print citations, please use the following citation guide or input this information into the style guide of your choice: 

•  Published materials: Title, Author, Publication Location, Publisher, Publication Date, Page# 
•  Archival materials: Collection Name, Collections#, Box#, Folder#

For shortened citations in formats such as film or web, please include, at a minimum, our institution name and the collection name and number. Photograph citations may include the item number instead of the collection, box, and folder numbers. Web citations should include a hyperlink back to our website. 

The Multimedia Division of the J. Willard Marriott Library Special Collections may take in donations of audio-visual and photograph collections from both the general public and from university partners. The University of Utah conducts physical preservation measures and provides climate-controlled and disaster-safe storage for donated material. Some things to consider before donation include:

• Access:  The Marriott Library Special Collections is a public archive. Collections with legal, ethical, privacy, or copyright concerns may not be a good fit. Donors are encouraged to carefully review collections before donation and remove material that should not be publicly accessed.

• Digitization:  Due to the resource requirements of digitization, digitization of deposited materials cannot be guaranteed , and scan-and-return donations are not possible at this time. For donors who require immediate access to their collections, we recommend digitizing material before donation. The Association of Moving Image Archivists maintains an international directory of digitization service suppliers.

• Organization: Donors are the experts on their collections! To improve processing and access, donors are encouraged to organize and identify collections before donation.

• Subjects:  The Multimedia Archives collects material related to the University of Utah, Salt Lake City, and Utah. Areas of collection strength include outdoor recreation, particularly snow sports and river running; Utah independent film; 20th century women’s history; science and technology, with an emphasis on mining; and Japanese Americans in Utah. Collections that fall outside these areas may be a better fit at another archive.

Special Collections is the final repository for unique media produced by The University of Utah. However, materials should not come to the Multimedia Division of Special Collections until they are no longer being used by the department that created them. Multimedia items still in use can be transferred to the Records Center in the University Archives and Records Management Department of Special Collections, where they can continue to be accessed at the convenience of the department. When they are no longer in use, multimedia materials may be transferred from Records Management to the Multimedia Archives, where they will be preserved and ultimately made accessible for future scholars of University of Utah history.

All donation inquiries should be made through the Donations form . These submissions are reviewed by a committee that meets once a month. For other questions, please reach out to the Head of the Multimedia Division. 

Researchers looking into University of Utah history should begin with the digital exhibit narrating the first 150 years of university history . For photographs, researchers should first consult the University of Utah Archives photograph collection , which contains over 250,000 prints, slides, and negatives, most of which date from 1900 to the 1990s. A selection of photographs from this collection is digitized and can be browsed or searched on the Digital Library , but many more are available to researchers who visit the Reading Room. Unlike other collection inventories, this does not include box or folder numbers, but is organized by subjects. Research requests to view this material should include the exact subjects listed in the inventory. 

Because collection inventories mostly describe material by box or folder instead of item, it is rare for individual students or athletes to be identified in finding aids. Instead, researchers are encouraged to search by subject and year. For athletics research, players in photographs and video are rarely identified by name, so knowing the jersey number of the person of interest is recommended. 

Athletic collections that have been digitized and are available to search and browse on the Digital Library include: 

• University of Utah basketball video collection
• University of Utah football video collection
• University of Utah Ski Team photograph collection

A growing number of University of Utah collections related to theatre and dance are also digitized, including:

• Vern Adix photograph collection
• C. Lowell Lees photograph collection
• Univeristy of Utah Dance Theses

Other collections were donated by specific departments, professors, or alumni and can be searched for on ArchivesWes t. Collections are usually titled after the individual or organization who donated them and may not reflect the contents.

While not held by the Multimedia Archives, some other options for researching University of Utah history include: 

• Utonians (U of U yearbooks) :  Produced between 1904 and 1971, Utonians may contain names of students and athletes. As a legacy addition to the Digital Library, keyword searches may not be exact, and we recommend researchers browse or check indexes of relevant time periods. Yearbooks are managed by the Print and Journal division of Special Collections, who should be contacted for reproduction or usage.
• The University of Utah Student newspapers :  The University of Utah has digitized The Chronicle as well as other student newspapers dating from 1892 to 2015. Utah Digital Newspapers also hosts numerous other historical Utah newspapers. While original copies may be held in Special Collections, Utah Digital Newspapers is managed by Digital Library Services , who should be contacted for research assistance or high resolution scans.
• Athletics media guides and programs : A selection of athletics media guides, statistics, and programs are available on the Digital Library. These resources were contributed by the Athletics Department and are not managed by Special Collections. 
• University Archives and Records Management :  The University and Records Management is a separate unit within Special Collections located at 666 Guardsman Way. In addition to caring for University records and material that is still being used by departments, Records houses over 500 collections documenting the institutional history of the University of Utah, which can be searched through Archives West .

Please note, it is rare for the Multimedia Archives to hold original photographic prints and negatives of images that were used in student newspapers, yearbooks, or other University publications. 

The KUTV News Collection (A0303) is housed in the Multimedia Division of Special Collections and includes thousands of film reels and videotapes with airchecks, edited segments, and series from Utah’s Channel 2 ranging from the 1960s to the early 2000s. The bulk of the collection ranges between the late 1970s to the 1990s, while materials before and after this range are few and far between. Only a small fraction of it is currently digitized, but Multimedia Archives is slowly making progress in making it more widely accessible.

Navigating the Collection

There are a couple of ways to navigate this collection: the finding aid, or inventory has a list of segments and dates from the first batch of digitized tapes, ranging from 1977 to 1979. Since then, more tapes have been digitized and added to the Digital Library . These will be added to the finding aid in due time. Meanwhile, their segments are searchable and they can be viewed by visiting the Special Collections Reading Room, or requested as a personal research copy by clicking on the “Request Archival File” link in the video page.

If looking for a different date range or subject than available in the Digital Library, please fill out the Special Collections Contact Form with detailed information such as specific dates and events, and a Multimedia Archivist will look into the materials that have not yet been digitized.

KUTV Extra

KUTV EXTRA was a news magazine type show that aired from 1977 to 1984 and had unique and diverse segments. The program attracted a new generation of filmmakers who took advantage of new possibilities in production, pre-recorded programming and genre to create their own unique mesh of critical exposés, short subject documentaries, experimental video, and in-depth interviews with local oddballs, Utah politicians, and national personalities from Robert Redford and George Romero to Timothy Leary and Harvey Milk.

Most of the approximately 250 KUTV EXTRA episodes are being uploaded to the Digital Library . EXTRA is a good resource when looking for famous and not-so famous people and happenings in Utah around the late 70s and early 80s.

Licensing

If the intention is to use the footage for commercial or non-commercial use, we ask for a filled out Special Collections Use Agreement . This is not a licensing document. We can provide master files of the KUTV materials, however, all the rights belong to Sinclair Broadcasting Group, and any use has to go through them. They can be contacted through contentsales@sgbtv.com .