Formidling fra felt i den digitale tidsalder

Abstract

Most archaeologists agree that public outreach is an important part of archaeological practice. Communication of fresh results from excavations and new research creates both legitimacy and greater understanding of our activities. In Norway, large scale archaeological excavations are often funded by the public sector, and public outreach is considered an important way of giving something back to society. Still, reaching out to the public is often downgraded during stressful fieldwork and considered as something you do when (or if) you have some spare time. This is unfortunate, because fieldwork is what most people associate with archaeology and has a huge potential when it comes to public outreach. In 2017-2019 the University of Bergen carried out a large excavation project, Sotrasambandet. While excavating 12 sites, we wanted to reach the public as well, to present fresh findings, introduce them to our methods, tell stories from the excavation and of course of what Stone Age life in Western Norway could have been like. In total, we produced 56 films and several different texts, and used social media as well as “open day” (evt. public day?), talks and small exhibitions to reach people. The films got great feedback, and were appreciated by schoolchildren, politicians and journalists alike.