As many gov’t webpages are deleted, Wayback Machine aims to save data

• In the midst of a flurry of government webpages being taken down by the Trump administration, the Internet Archive is scrambling to save public data before it’s possibly lost forever. Mark Graham, the director of the San Francisco nonprofit’s Wayback Machine, touted the groups work in an interview on Friday.
• During Trump’s second term, webpages related to everything from public health studies and foreign aid, to agriculture and scientific research, to LGBTQ+ issues are being removed from government sites.
• The Internet Archive has saved federal government websites during each presidential transition dating back to 2004 in collaboration with many organizations.

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In the midst of a flurry of government webpages being taken down by the Trump administration, the Wayback Machine at the Internet Archive is scrambling to save public data before it’s possibly lost forever.

Mark Graham, the director of the San Francisco nonprofit’s Wayback Machine, touted the group’s work in an interview with Democracy Now on Friday, Feb. 28.

What does the Wayback Machine do?

“The Internet Archive is a nonprofit organization with a mission of universal access to all knowledge,” Graham said. “About 28 years ago, the founder of the Internet Archive, Brewster Kahle, pressed record on a new media called the web. And we’ve been working hard every day since, getting better at doing just that: archiving much of the public web.”

During Trump’s second term, government webpages related to everything from public health and foreign aid, to agriculture and scientific research, to LGTBTQ+ issues are being removed from government sites.

The archive has saved federal government websites during each presidential transition dating back to 2004 in collaboration with many organizations.

What is different about the Trump administration?

However, while Graham said it is typical for new presidential administrations to scrub or revamp some online resources, the rate at which the Trump administration is doing so has been much faster than others.

Graham said, “There have been thousands and thousands of pages removed, many websites. For example, the USAID sites, if you got it right now, it just basically tells you how you can get material if you had been an employee there. A site called reproductiverights.gov. I could go on. Many, many sites are just gone.”

What is being impacted?

Those aren’t the only sites.

As Straight Arrow News previously reported, the Department of Justice (DOJ) has removed a database tracking police misconduct, and the National Park Service has deleted transgender references from the gay rights Stonewall Monument website.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and U.S. Census Bureau have also removed some gender references after Trump signed an executive order banning terms he says censor or limit free speech.

Agencies said the removals are temporary, but the Internet Archive isn’t counting on it, aiming preserve the dissemination of all information it saves to inform generations to come.

How much longer will the online archive last?

“It’s stayed up for 28 years, and we’re pretty sure it’s going to stay up for at least 28 more,” Graham said.

The Wayback Machine is available to anyone for free at web.archive.org.