ABM-utvikling og avvikling: institusjonell konvergens og divergens i kulturpolitikken

Abstract

The Norwegian Archive, Library and Museum Authority (ABM-utvikling – Statens senter for arkiv, bibliotek og museum) existed between 2003 and 2010. This article raises the question of why ABM-utvikling was not continued as a cultural policy instrument for the LAM sector. The new body for LAM policy development was based on the notion of converging media expressions and institutions in the digital age, and the need for coordination of central government LAM-policies. Several external evaluations and follow-up reorganizations worked towards reestablishing sector-based order in the years leading up to closure, reflected and reinforced the dampened, and conflicting aspirations regarding LAM-policy convergence. This case study provides a basis for elucidating the conditions for state governance in the cultural heritage area, contributes to the academic and professional discussion of models of public sector governance and public administration reorganization processes, and is a contribution to the international literature on institutional coordination and convergence in the LAM field. Collaboration and convergence in the LAM sector can be about several different things, such as co-location, different forms of collaboration (e.g., on exhibitions) and digitalization. The article describes the process from the establishment of ABM–utvikling in 2003 through several reorganizations and closure in 2010. An underlying and central issue in the process was the organization of the digitization of cultural heritage, and whether a separate LAM sector central government agency for digitalization policy coordination was the appropriate policy instrument to achieve this objective.