Preserving the web isn't the problem, says Internet Archive director

The Internet Archive's Wayback Machine has been blocked by sites such as Reddit, The New York Times and The Guardian amid worries about AI scraping. Internet Archive director Mark Graham says, "These concerns are understandable, but unfounded." In a TechDirt blog titled "Preserving The Web Is Not The Problem.

Losing It Is", Graham stresses that "The Wayback Machine is built for human readers." The blog explains why many are wary of AI scrapers and describes measures the archive has put in place to stop said AI bots. He warns that stopping archival sites carries costs: "Journalists lose tools for accountability.

Researchers lose evidence. The web becomes more fragile and more fragmented, and history becomes easier to rewrite." The piece also notes that some sites, especially those with paywalls like The Guardian and The New York Times, may block archival tools to prevent bypassing restrictions.

internet archive, wayback machine, ai scraping, mark graham, the guardian, reddit, paywalls, archival tools, web preservation, ai bots