The Internet Archive’s TV News service allows you to conduct text searches on words and phrases that have been mentioned on television.
You can enter a phrase such as “if you like your plan” and gain historical and contextual insight into the phrase over time, as well as be able to directly view in your browser that phrase being spoken.
Remember hearing a piece of a phrase but can not recall on which day, channel or by whom it was said? No worries. Enter the phrase into the search box and the clip you are looking for is a just a few clicks away.
Give it a try yourself by searching for something like: “When the American people find out how their government has secretly interpreted the Patriot Act” and see what turns up.
The tag cloud on the home page also shows you frequently spoken words from recent captures. This has the added side effect that it is often filled with content from advertisers. See who is conducting the largest television advertising campaigns (and who won’t be reported on negatively because they control the purse strings).
Track the lack of journalism by seeing the same press release parroted as news by multiple media organizations and more.
The Television News Archive opens new possibilities for journalism, watchdogs, enthusiasts, transparency, accountability and our very democracies themselves.
Remember to try the new Beta Version as well by clicking the link on the top right of the page.
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