About the Archive
The Vanderbilt Television News Archive began recording broadcasts on August 5, 1968 with the mission to create, preserve and provide access to the news broadcasts from the U.S. national television networks.
The core collection of the Archive consists of regularly scheduled newscasts from ABC, CBS, NBC, CNN and Fox News. Special news reports are recorded in addition to these newscasts, including material from other networks. We record broadcasts as they are televised, provide the widest access allowable within copyright for scholarship and research, and preserve the content for future generations. The database currently includes 1,451,515 records, including abstracts at the story level of regular evening newscasts and catalog records for each special news report.
You can view a bibliography of articles about the Archive and of published research projects and scholarly communications that have used the Archive as a resource.
The Archive operates as a unit of the Vanderbilt University Libraries. Cliff Anderson provides oversight for the Archive and its five full-time permanent staff members. [View staff directory.]
The Archive works in partnership with the Motion Picture, Broadcasting, and Recorded Sound Division of the Library of Congress. Copies of the programs we record are provided to the Library of Congress for permanent preservation and these recordings become part of their collection.
Content in our collection is available through a loan service and can be accessed through streaming video.
Streaming video is available to a limited audience and to limited parts of the collection due to copyright considerations. Currently, only individuals associated with sponsoring colleges and universities can view streaming video. Visitors to the Archive in Nashville have access to view all content from our collection.
Loan service for all items in the collection is available to the public. The Archive provides loans digitally. Material requested from the collection is sent via media.vanderbilt.edu. An email with a link to establish your media.vanderbilt.edu account is sent with your initial order. A link to a media.vanderbilt.edu folder containing the contents of your order is sent to your email address. In compliance with the terms of the copyright law, all material is considered a loan. The link to the folder for your loan expires within thirty days. A one-time thirty-day renewal may be requested if needed.
View our Refund Policy and Privacy Policy.
Visiting the Archive? You can view a map of our location at the Vanderbilt Campus.