It's not really burning, though recent articles detailing major news outlets blocking the Wayback Machine's webcrawlers due to a purported fear of AI training might lead you to believe it's the end of the Archive as you've come to know it. Major outlets have relied on the Wayback Machine, and now they're turning their back on it, blocking the ability to preserve journalistic history
Yesterday's Off The Hook features a longform interview with the Archive's Jason Scott, and it's well worth a listen. Scott views the recent blocks as important but overhyped, believing these outlets will soon relent and this news cycle will be forgotten. Even so, the swift over-reaction of outlets like the NY Times is fascinating, as Archive staff can't even access the Times website from the Archive office.
The interview delves into the history of the Archive, which I knew very little about. You'll learn about its foundational purpose, how it's changed over time, and what type of physical infrastructure supports it. I've always viewed the Archive as a fragile entity. It very much is not, but it is worthy of your attention and support.