Putting It Into Practice

Storing Paper Collections

Newsprint

Because groundwood papers were commercially produced after about 1840, newsprint after that date is likely to be highly acidic. Long-term preservation of this paper is difficult at best. It is possible to treat newsprint by deacidification to retard its deterioration, but this treatment is usually economically impractical. Once paper has already turned yellow and brittle, deacidification will not make the paper white and flexible again. Microfilming is usually the preferred preservation option for bound newspaper collections or large collections of clipping scrapbooks.

Most news clippings are important because of their information, not for the value of the clippings themselves. For this reason, photocopying or microfilming are considered the most practical preservation options. All photocopying should be done on archival-quality paper; originals can then be deaccessioned at the discretion of the librarian or curator. News clippings with photographs that do not photocopy well may be physically separated from other papers in a folder by placing them inside an enclosure made of polyester. News clippings to be retained in their original form should be deacidified and stored in buffered enclosures.