Epistolari e carteggi digitali. riflessioni sulla formazione, gestione e conservazione a lungo termine

This paper delves into the profound transformation that epistolaries and correspondences have undergone in the digital age. Traditionally, personal and professional correspondence was exchanged through handwritten or typed letters, which were later sent via postal mail. However, in the span of just a few decades, the rise of digital communication tools, such as email, instant messaging (e.g., WhatsApp, Telegram), and social media platforms, has fundamentally altered how individuals communicate. Despite their differences in form, these digital correspondences can be seen as a continuation of the epistolary tradition. The paper discusses the historical significance of traditional epistolaries, which have provided invaluable insight into the lives, thoughts, and relationships of influential figures. For instance, the correspondence of political leaders such as Alcide De Gasperi, Antonio Gramsci, and Aldo Moro has been crucial for understanding the ideological and political dynamics of the time. Similarly, the letters exchanged between notable literary figures such as Giovanni Verga and Luigi Capuana, or Dino Campana and Sibilla Aleramo, have played an essential role in literary studies. However, the shift to digital communication presents new challenges in terms of archiving and long-term preservation. Emails, which are now a dominant form of correspondence, pose complex issues for archivists. These include the preservation of attachments, the vast quantity of messages generated daily, and the difficulty of organizing digital archives in a logical and archivally correct manner. In addition, the integration of links to external resources (e.g., documents stored in the cloud) complicates the task of ensuring the accessibility of all components of an email over time. Privacy concerns also arise, as many emails contain personal data, and digital correspondences are subject to varying national privacy laws. Another key issue is the so-called “digital legacy,” which refers to the difficulty of accessing an individual’s email archive after their death, due to authentication barriers and limited retention periods set by email service providers. To address these challenges, several recent international projects aimed at developing solutions for preserving digital correspondences are reviewed. For example, the “Future of Email Archives” report, published in 2018, highlights the importance of using standardized formats such as PDF/A for long-term preservation. Other initiatives include the RATOM project, which focuses on email appraisal and triage, and the ePADD project, designed to support the archival and research needs of digital epistolaries. The paper concludes by emphasizing the need for interdisciplinary collaboration, involving archivists, IT professionals, and legal experts, to develop best practices and policies for the creation, management, and preservation of digital epistolaries. It advocates for the creation of guidelines in order to help individuals and organizations separate personal and professional emails, organize archives effectively, and ensure the long-term preservation of valuable digital correspondence.