How can emotion affect the collection of history online?

 One of the most common ways in which emotion can sometimes interfere with the supposedly objective act of collecting history is through bias and personal experience. A lot of history online is from the 20th century, and may likely intersect with the past life events of digital historians. It can be likely for a historian to feel emotionally attached to a specific historical event due to the direct or indirect effect that it had on their life at that time. Emotions could easily make the collection of history easier or harder on a historian based on their personal circumstance revolving around pieces of history. 

 

Emotion can also come from bias. For example, an American historian whose relatives passed away in the Vietnam War might feel more compelled to collect history from the USA's and South Vietnam's perspectives rather than North Vietnam's. This may result in a lack of objectivity and balance in historical records.

 

There are some benefits to emotions in the context of gathering history online. Just like the Syrian Heritage Archive shown in the lecture, the purpose of some archives can also include giving other the chance to reconnect with the past, which can result in an emotional experience. Personal stories tied with historical artifacts and documents can sometimes encourage more historical research.