Institutional Convergence and Divergence in Norwegian Cultural Policy. Central Government LAM-organization 1999 – 2019

Abstract

[T]he advent of electronic sources of information and their ever-increasing volume and variety will require a major redefinition and integration of the role of archives, museums, and research libraries. It is my point of view that the distinction between all of these apparently different types of institutions will eventually make little sense. (Rayward 1998, 207). Rayward’s prediction describes expectations in the LAM (libraries, archives, and museums) field that technological change and digitalization would produce coordination gains and institutional mergers over time. In Norway, The Norwegian Archive, Library and Museum Authority (ABM–utvikling – Statens senter for arkiv, bibliotek og museum), from here on referred to as ABM–u, was established in 2003. The digitization of documents such as books, journals, archival material and museum objects, and with this increasing similarity in working methods between the sectors was an essential argument in the process leading up to the creation of ABM–u: The commonality between the three sectors is even stronger through the growing use of information and communication technology (ICT) both in the organization and management of collections and materials and in the dissemination work towards the public. In addition, the three types of institutions increasingly handle digital material, either in the form of digitized representation of other original material, or material that already exists in digital form. This may lead to the working methods becoming more similar, and it is natural to consider how closely the coordination potential can develop so that users can have the easiest possible access to combined services. (St.meld. nr. 22 (1999–2000), 2).¹