The Holocaust in Digital Spaces

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In an increasingly digital world, conversations about the Holocaust and digital spaces have largely centred around morally polarizing debates regarding Holocaust selfies at memorial sites, such as Auschwitz-Birkenau. Yet, as the Holocaust fades from living memory and we approach a post-witness world, critical attention should be afforded to the role that digital technologies play in shaping public memory, education, and research about the Holocaust. From social media posts to virtual reality tours of Auschwitz I and digitally rendered archival objects, there can be no doubt that the Holocaust is permeating all forms of digital spaces, often in radically innovative ways. This week, we will explore the process and potential consequences of digitally rendered landscapes of the Holocaust by reading “Visualising Evidence and Landscapes of Atrocities: An Ethical Perspective”, an examination of the digital heritage project for Lager Sylt Concentration Camp, formerly in the Channel Islands.

Kerti J., Sturdy Colls C., Swetnam R. (2021) Visualising Evidence and Landscapes of Atrocities: An Ethical Perspective. In: Walden V.G. (eds) Digital Holocaust Memory, Education and Research. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-83496-8_6