A few weeks ago, a social media post popped up on my feeds from Destination Salem, our city’s official tourism office, featuring two young women dressed in garish costumes with giggly grins. They were/are wannabe “girl historians” (actually not historians at all) visiting Salem to promote their current podcast series, a comedy on the Salem Witch Trials. I was taken aback; you see and hear all sorts of exploitative expressions about 1692 in Salem, but seldom from “official” parties, which tend to walk a finer line. I reposted, along with a statement about how absolutely funny the witch trials were, and the next day the post disappeared. I had captured a screen shot, however, and here it is.
I was kind of angry when I captured the screen shot, but over the following week I just forgot about it. I really didn’t want to invest much time into something that seemed kind of silly. I tried to listen to the “girls,” but all I can say is: there are many great history podcasts, a lot of great podcasts by real historians who happen to be women, and several great podcasts on the Salem witch trials, and their podcast falls into none of those categories. But it’s not about them, really; it’s about Salem, because Destination Salem represents the City, and by extension, its residents. The photograph above kept dwelling in the back of my mind (rent-free!) and after a while I realized that it was conjuring up memories of another photograph, or series of photographs. There was a huge spread in Life magazine in September of 1949 on Marian Starkey’s groundbreaking new book, The Devil in Massachusetts: a Modern Enquiry into the Salem Witch Trials, which featured very evocative photographs of Salem sites and the “Salem girls” by photographer Nina Leen. Now these photos were dress-up promotion, just like the photo of the “girl historians” above, but what a difference! The subtlety and poignancy and starkness represent respect of a tragedy, rather than the craven commercialization of a “comedy”. The promotion of an insignificant podcast seems so small, pathetic actually, when compared with a multi-page spread in a national periodical, so much so that the event itself seems reduced in significance. Funny how that happened.
Nina Leen photographs, Life Magazine, September 1949.
July 22nd, 2024 at 7:51 am
Oh, wow. Talk about lack of judgement. And empathy.
July 22nd, 2024 at 8:11 am
Wow! A new level of appalling bad taste.
July 22nd, 2024 at 8:14 am
I agree with you 100%. Unfortunately, there’s profit to be made for tourist destinations from such campiness. But can you imagine a similar treatment of other historical sites, e.g. Gettysburg battlefield?
July 22nd, 2024 at 8:18 am
I can’t. I haven’t been to Gettysburg for quite a while, and people tell me there are some Salem comparisons, but I cannot imagine this level of cravenness.
July 22nd, 2024 at 9:04 am
Donna — this is terrible. I do hope Destination Salem sees your post and it shakes them up a bit, if possible. Is the staff there now the same as when the “Bewitched” statue was approved?
How anyone, even 330 years later, could not understand this was a tragedy and not to be exploited (and that those same people could be paid to promote a comedy!) is beyond appalling. The Gettysburg analogy was excellent. Someone needs to wake up these people at Destination Salem!
July 22nd, 2024 at 9:47 am
Well, they did take the post down so I assume they have accepted responsibility and are not proud of this promotion. I don’t think Destination Salem existed at the time of the statue’s installation, but I’ll check. In any case, it was not their call. The Mayor’s office approved that.