Dear Spike TV,
You are not known for quality programming. You know it and I know it. But seriously, you have stooped to a new low level when you decided to begin airing American Digger. Let's take a look at a description of the show from your website, shall we?
This new unscripted original series follows former professional wrestler turned modern day relic hunter Ric Savage, as he and his team from American Savage target areas such as battlefields and historic sites in the hopes of striking it rich and capitalizing on unearthing and selling bits of American history. The only thing standing in their way are the homeowners themselves, who Savage must convince to allow them to dig up their property using state-of-the-art metal detectors and heavy-duty excavation equipment. What artifacts they find, they sell for a substantial profit, but not before negotiating a deal to divide the revenue with the property owners. [source]
And let's compare that to a new show aired on the National Geographic Channel.
Dear National Geographic Channel,
You actually have a reputation to uphold. Despite this reputation, you still opted to air the show Diggers. Although I can't manage to find a description on your website, all external sources describe the show as a competition for who can find the most valuable artifacts from battlefields and historic sites.
To both channels: while I realize that you're filming these shows on private lands, your methods and messages are deplorable. Let me sum up some of the major issues.
1) The shows violate archaeological ethics, including those concerning commercialization. Archaeologists and other professionals oppose the buying and selling of artifacts with the understanding that making artifacts commodities then encourages destruction of important sites by treasure hunters such as those featured on your shows. [source]
2) Removing historic artifacts without recording where and when they were found renders those objects virtually useless in the telling of our collective history [source]. In the museum world, we call this 'provenance.' Let me break it down for you: knowing where something was found, what was found around it, how deep it was buried, when it was dug up, the type of soil it was found in, and a variety of other factors work together to give us contextual clues about what happened in the past and help us recreate the past. This is especially important because you'll be searching areas such as battlefields.
3) You are messing with my history. With my family's history. With my friends' history. With the history of people that I don't know. You're taking potential information and knowledge out of the public realm for monetary profit. Once you take those artifacts out of the ground and sell them, we cannot get that knowledge back. It's lost forever.
4) There are lots of other issues at stake here. I encourage you to read statements by the following organizations:
-International Committee on Archaeological Heritage Management
-Society for American Archaeology
-National Trust for Historic Preservation
-Archaeology Southwest
I urge you to boycott watching these shows. If you'd like to raise your voice in opposition, I encourage you to sign the following two petitions:
-Petition against Diggers
-Petition against American Digger
You are not known for quality programming. You know it and I know it. But seriously, you have stooped to a new low level when you decided to begin airing American Digger. Let's take a look at a description of the show from your website, shall we?
This new unscripted original series follows former professional wrestler turned modern day relic hunter Ric Savage, as he and his team from American Savage target areas such as battlefields and historic sites in the hopes of striking it rich and capitalizing on unearthing and selling bits of American history. The only thing standing in their way are the homeowners themselves, who Savage must convince to allow them to dig up their property using state-of-the-art metal detectors and heavy-duty excavation equipment. What artifacts they find, they sell for a substantial profit, but not before negotiating a deal to divide the revenue with the property owners. [source]
And let's compare that to a new show aired on the National Geographic Channel.
Dear National Geographic Channel,
You actually have a reputation to uphold. Despite this reputation, you still opted to air the show Diggers. Although I can't manage to find a description on your website, all external sources describe the show as a competition for who can find the most valuable artifacts from battlefields and historic sites.
To both channels: while I realize that you're filming these shows on private lands, your methods and messages are deplorable. Let me sum up some of the major issues.
1) The shows violate archaeological ethics, including those concerning commercialization. Archaeologists and other professionals oppose the buying and selling of artifacts with the understanding that making artifacts commodities then encourages destruction of important sites by treasure hunters such as those featured on your shows. [source]
2) Removing historic artifacts without recording where and when they were found renders those objects virtually useless in the telling of our collective history [source]. In the museum world, we call this 'provenance.' Let me break it down for you: knowing where something was found, what was found around it, how deep it was buried, when it was dug up, the type of soil it was found in, and a variety of other factors work together to give us contextual clues about what happened in the past and help us recreate the past. This is especially important because you'll be searching areas such as battlefields.
3) You are messing with my history. With my family's history. With my friends' history. With the history of people that I don't know. You're taking potential information and knowledge out of the public realm for monetary profit. Once you take those artifacts out of the ground and sell them, we cannot get that knowledge back. It's lost forever.
4) There are lots of other issues at stake here. I encourage you to read statements by the following organizations:
-International Committee on Archaeological Heritage Management
-Society for American Archaeology
-National Trust for Historic Preservation
-Archaeology Southwest
I urge you to boycott watching these shows. If you'd like to raise your voice in opposition, I encourage you to sign the following two petitions:
-Petition against Diggers
-Petition against American Digger
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