Wikipedia defines lost media as "any media that is believed to no longer exist in any format, or for which any copies cannot be located." A piece of art that someone lovingly handcrafted, which now no longer exists. The music video that my best friend and I made in middle school for Justin Beiber's 'Boyfriend' is technically lost media. But this obviously does not compare with losing songs, TV episodes, and even entire films. Note that there are plenty of works of traditional art and literature which have gone missing, but the lost media fascination, for most people, tends to revolve around auidovisual works.
How do we lose media?
Usually lost media is not fully lost. Often times, it's being held in the archives of some megacorp that won't let it see the light of day because it wont make money in the way they want it to. Like the Henry Rollins and RuPaul cover of Funky Town, which couldn't be released becuse it would have conflicted with the release of the Shrek 2 Official Soundtrack. If I ever find the podcast episode where Rollins talks about this, I promise I'll link it.
Digital preservation, pirating, and the imperminance of it all
My college library had an incredible archives section. If you wanted to see an old piece of physical media- an ancient book, an old riot grrrl zine, maybe a propaganda poster - you could request an appointment. The librarian on duty would bring the media up from a climate controlled basement, and keep an eye to make sure that you weren't handling it improperly. Digital work is infinitely less fragile, yet somehow just as easy to destroy.
Why it matters to me
My fascination with lost media is honestly less about the lost media itself. Don't get me wrong, I think preserving art and history is important! But I am much more fascinated by the culture that surrounds it. My first introduction to lost media was Nick Robinson's video about the McDonald's training DS game. I'm going to ask you to watch it before continuing, because I'm going to talk about how Robinson tells this story in a way that will spoil the video if you haven't already seen it. If you don't care, read on. But I'm telling you, it's something special.
Call me weird, but I legitimatelty get chills at "That person... is me." This is expert storytelling! This is expert storytelling that could not exist without the internet! And this is my true obsession: the way the internet has evolved what stories we tell and our methods of telling them.
Begining in early 2020, there has been an upward trend in searches for YouTube videos about lost media. Clearly, it's a topic that fascinates a lot of people. And watching Robinson's video, I think it's pretty easy to understand why. Athough the viewer isn't required to do their own hunting, the in-depth coverage of how the media was found allows them to come along for the ride. It allows them to have a hand in uncovering the mystery. It allows them to be in the room with Nick when his brother recieves the email about his luggage.
A healthy dose of mystery
This is distinctly different from reading a Sherlock Holmes book. The narrator is talking to you. You are part of the story. If the video is posted as a series as the creator investigates, your part in the story can be as real as you make it. This is distinctly different from playing a videogame. Once again, it's happening in real life. You can reap the rewards of solving the mystery, with a group of likeminded individuals if you desire to engage. This is distinctly different from truecrime. No one is harmed.