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studied photojournalism because I wanted to preserve history. Family history
often is overlooked, but it is an important, perishing treasure. Too many good
stories go untold; too many people lack a sense of place and purpose. I knew
very little about the Dostal family before I began this project. But with each
new discovery, I placed my life in a more meaningful context. Hynek Dostal was my great grandfather, and he is the focus of the story. He was a prominent St. Louisan who helped form the country of Czechoslovakia. But it was the death of my grandmother and a desire to know more about my roots that compelled me to begin this project. Discrepancies exist in genealogical research. Official records and people's recollections can vary significantly. While I worked on the project, I made every attempt to verify the facts. But, I welcome corrections or supplemental information. Watch the QuickTime movies, which contain hundreds of photographs. It's the best way to view the story. The QuickTime plug-in is free. The written chapters contain the same information but few photographs. After viewing the story, listen to the voices of decendents. The RealPlayer plug-in is required, but it also is free. My research and interview with Ken Burns focus on the storytelling process. These sections contain practical advice for those who want to do similar work. Today, my feelings about Hynek Dostal are mixed. I believe he accomplished important work that positively affected many lives. But, the personal toll on his family leaves me saddened. I still have many unanswered questions and yearn for enlightning interviews that can never happen. Yet, I feel satisfied by what has been unearthed so far. Thanks for being part of my voyage of discovery. - Charles Williams, December 10, 2001 Prologue, 1997 "Dostal: The First Generation of a Czech Family in America." was constructed after nine months of work toward my master's degree in journalism from the University of Missouri. These words introduce the CD: "Separately, family photographs record a brief instant of life. But carefully woven together they form a story. Throughout our lives we are photographed but pay little attention to the consequence of the act. We have little regard for the historical significance of casual pictures.My family history is a disappearing commodity. But is it a journalistically viable subject? Would anyone care? Some may contend that a CD that primarily focuses on such personal subject matter is not objective journalism. Furthermore, they may contend that it is not journalism because it is not distributed through traditional media outlets. But, I believe these arguments are wrong. I believe my project does constitute journalism in its purest form because it is storytelling based on a set of known facts. My project appeals to many different groups, including my extended family, both past and future. It appeals to the people of Spillville, Iowa, and St. Louis, Missouri, and those in the small town of Borsice located in the Czech Republic because it is part of their history, too. It appeals to other people doing similar genealogical research. It appeals to immigrants who have had similar assimilation experiences. And finally, it appeals to the Czech community which has attempted to preserve its history through organizations such as the Spillville Historical Society, The Czech Preservation Society and the National Czech and Slovak Museum. Although my project is personal, it is clearly journalism. My project is important for other reasons as well. It preserves history and provides a blueprint for future genealogists. It demonstrates that one person can photograph, write, narrate, design, program and publish a CD primarily from home, with widely available tools. The potential for multimedia is clearly demonstrated. The use of sound with still photographs provides unprecedented potential for family storytelling. The applications of the World Wide Web are shown. Hundreds of genealogy sites exist that provide helpful information on subjects such as genealogical terminology, researching strategies and photographic preservation. For decades, the family photo album or scrapbook has been the primary means of documenting family history. However, the emergence of new technologies has facilitated alternative methods of record keeping. I've created a record of my family history that ventures beyond the traditional family scrapbook. My project focuses on my great grandfather Hynek Dostal, but it celebrates the lives of an entire generation. Photojournalists seek stories of immigrants struggling in a new land. Although my family is not special, the struggles they've encountered have universal qualities that remind everyone of personal origins. My literature review studied how historical photographs are analyzed, the relationship of subjects to one another as well as the traditional presentation of photographs in the home. The research portion describes methods of incorporating multimedia with historical photographs. It serves as a blueprint for others who are doing similar genealogical research. Background material on Ken Burns, Pedro Meyer and Rick Smolan is included. These individuals are at the forefront in the field of photography-based multimedia. I had many setbacks during my voyage of discovery. A camera problem ruined sixty-six rolls of film, crippling two months worth of work. A defective motherboard on my computer prevented sound capture, and a loss of the computer video signal rendered the machine inoperable. I managed to work through the engineering defects. I expected to encounter dead ends, delays, language barriers and frustration. Indeed, I did. I also hoped to find exciting stories, interesting people and a context for my own life, and I did. Besides the day-to-day work of scanning and enhancing photos and editing sound, the toughest part of the project was organizing the data and forming a story. My photos attempted to recreate a sense of time and place as well as describe the way people are now. The photos hoped to create a bridge to the past and fill holes in the present. After gathering data for three months, I ended up with close to 1000 photos and 30 hours of raw sound, but no story. I wrote a script that was thirty pages long. Even so, I only used a portion of the data I gathered. The original CD project consists of fifteen Adobe Premiere movies that tell the story of the first generation of Dostal immigrants to arrive in America. The movies last about an hour and fifteen minutes. In addition, two editions of the Czech newspaper, HLAS, were designed to create a "talking" newspaper that includes interviews with Dostal descendants. The interviews came from such diverse places as Tucson, Arizona, St. Louis, Missouri, College Station, Texas, Davenport, Iowa, Spillville, Iowa, Kansas City, Missouri, Leawood, Kansas and Troy, Missouri. Most importantly, the project has revealed my family history and Czech heritage. The experience provided a context for my life that I'll pass down to future generations. In addition, I learned about the process of genealogical research and the rapidly changing field of CD production. Genealogical research can be a long and frustrating endeavor. I had no living grandparents to interview; my last surviving grandmother died two years ago. Her death reinforced the importance of capturing and recording events, beginning today. Countless stories, historical knowledge and family history is forever lost when a relative dies. My project required family research, photography, reporting skills, computer skills and extensive travel, but it was a personal project that demonstrated the possibilities for every family to record their own history in a journalistic manner and create a context for future generations. The implications of my project will extend well beyond my immediate family. Everyone has family roots that are worth preserving. The ability for people to self-publish their history is a new and exciting concept. - Charles Williams April 30, 1997 |