Genealogical technicalities: family history as a vehicle for public education about archival access technologies

Abstract In this article I interrogate how various technologies for accessing archives for genealogical research have been presented in 20 years of a Swedish radio programme, Släktband (‘Family Ties’), where genealogists share stories about finding information about their ancestors. My focus is the technologies presented as new by the programme. How have new technologies been presented on the programme? How have they been discussed relative to traditional genealogical practices? The material consists of 106 episodes aired on Swedish Radio between 2004 and 2025. The method used to answer these research questions is reflexive thematic analysis, with a theoretical framework based on Strandgaard Jensen’s concept of digital archival literacy (2021). I find there are three themes in how new technologies have been presented on the programme: (1) introducing actors, projects, and services; (2) giving instructions and explaining usage; and (3) critiques of new technologies. I find that family history can function as a vehicle for public education about new technologies for understanding, accessing, and using archives.