History Now: The ethics of crime histories

History Now seminars explore current and compelling issues affecting the practice of contemporary history. It is a long-running series of public talks and discussions, bringing new perspectives to all aspects of historical practice. This year History Now is a collaboration between the History Council of NSW (HCNSW), the State Library of NSW and the Australian Centre for Public History (ACPH) at UTS.

Meg Foster and Rachel Franks discuss the ethics of writing crime histories that are geared towards a public readership.

Dr Meg Foster is an award-winning historian of banditry, settler colonial and public history. She is a Chancellor’s Research Fellow at the University of Technology, Sydney and a 2024 Top-5 Media Resident at the ABC. Prior to this, Meg was a research fellow in history at the University of Cambridge. She is the author of Boundary Crossers: The Hidden History of Australia’s Other Bushrangers (Sydney: NewSouth, 2022) which explores the lives of Aboriginal, Chinese, African-American and female bushrangers.

Dr Rachel Franks is the coordinator of scholarship at the State Library of NSW. She holds PhDs in Australian crime fiction (Central Queensland University) and in true crime texts (University of Sydney). A qualified educator and librarian, her extensive work on crime fiction, true crime, popular culture and information science has been presented at numerous conferences, as well as on radio and television. An award-winning writer, her research can be found in a wide variety of books, journals, magazines and online resources. She is the author of An Uncommon Hangman: The Life and Deaths of Robert ‘Nosey Bob’ Howard (2022).

Nerida Campbell is a curator with over 20 years’ experience working with collections, sites and stories relating to crime, policing, and the courts. She has a particular interest in the historical experience of female criminals within the NSW justice system. Campbell is currently working with the Harbour Trust on a series of interpretation projects for Cockatoo Island, a UNESCO World Heritage site, which has a complex past that includes convict, juvenile justice and Pr*son histories.

History Now is short and sweet. The tone is conversational, and the format is two speakers, each talking for 15–20 minutes, followed by a Q&A. History Now is usually an in-person event unless otherwise stated. History Now 2024 is programmed by Jesse Adams Stein (Vice President of HCNSW / Member of ACPH).

Image credit: Oswald Thomas Madeley, A group of police, 1880, silver albumen print, 9.8 x 13.2 cm, State Library of Victoria collection, out of copyright.

Host or Publisher State Library of New South Wales