Howard Besser

Howard Besser is Professor of Cinema Studies and Director of New York University's Moving Image Archiving & Preservation Program, as well as Senior Scientist for Digital Library Initiatives for NYU's Library.  His current research projects involve preserving digital public television, preserving and providing digital access to dance performance, preserving difficult electronic works, and issues around copyright and fair use, Do-It-Yourself media, and the changing nature of media with the advent of digital delivery systems.

In 2003, he retired from his position as Professor at UCLA’s School of Education and Information Studies where he taught, did research, and supervised projects, but he remains a Professor Emeritus at UCLA. 

Dr. Besser has been on the faculty of UC Berkeley's School of Information Management & systems, had a long-term affiliation with the Berkeley Multimedia Research Center, and is still on the Advisory Board for the UCB Art Technology, & Culture series.  From 1994-96 he was on the faculty of the University of Michigan's School of Information where he headed a committee developing a curriculum in multimedia and digital publishing. He has also been an Assistant Professor at the University of Pittsburgh.

Howard is also actively involved with museums and the art community. He was one of the founders and served on the Management Committee of the Museum Educational Site Licensing Project, and directed a Mellon-sponsored study of image distribution from museums to universities. His most recent work in this area involves examining issues of organization, access, and longevity for new media art in collaboration with the Electronic Café International and a group of museums with electronic art collections.

He travels a lot, speaks frequently at professional conferences, gives workshops about half a dozen times a year, and consults for libraries, museums, and other institutions. 

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