LISNews: Librarian News

With 6500 meals to prepare this week for the largest conference to be held in Dunedin for about three years, University of Otago (NZ) catering staff are busy. Otago U website reports on culinary preparations for the Conference.

They are catering for about 630 at the Library and Information Association of New Zealand's centennial conference - more than 500 delegates and about 90 exhibitors - producing breakfasts, morning and afternoon teas, lunches and cocktail event food.

That included catering to more than 80 vegan, lactose-intolerant and gluten-intolerant people with specialised dietary requirements, University Union general manager Stephen Baughan said yesterday.

The conference, spread over several university lecture theatres, began on Sunday and finishes today.

Another article on the conference profiles a former New Zealand national librarian, Mary Ronnie, now in her eighties, and still doing her Scottish dancing. Ms Ronnie emphasised she was optimistic that public libraries - and books - would still be going strong in New Zealand in another 100 years.

A recent visit to a city public library had confirmed that it was filled with members of the public, and this was a good sign for the future. -- Read More

News from the mother country, the UK: Writers Philip Pullman, Kate Mosse and Will Self have criticised government cuts that could see up to a quarter of librarians lose their jobs over the next year. Widespread library closures are expected as councils cut their services and look to volunteers in an attempt to balance budgets hit by the coalition's spending review.

Mosse said "frontline support for literacy" was being cut, while Pullman declared that the librarian "is not simply a checkout clerk", and Self condemned the "crude calculus of cost-benefit analysis" involved.

North Yorkshire is considering reducing its 42 libraries to 18 over four years, while Leeds is proposing to axe 20 smaller libraries. Cornwall, Brent, Lewisham, Hammersmith and Fulham, Richmond, Barnsley and Warrington are also planning closures. In Buckinghamshire, 14 libraries could become volunteer-run; in Gloucestershire, 12 will be closed if volunteers do not step forward. Camden, Westminster, Oldham, Southampton and Cambridgeshire are among the councils whose plans include greater use of volunteer staff.

Guardian UK reports.

Katie Price dresses up as a 'sexy librarian' at a book launch at Selfridge's in London (video & pics).

At the launch for her 547th autobiography (really?) the glamour model really toned things down, opting for a sort of sexy librarian look (sorry if we’ve offended any real librarians out there with this comparison) with a demure blouse, pinstripe pencil skirt, large belt and a funny little fascinator thing on her head. She even wore natural looking make up. And the finishing touch to convince us that she’s proper smart and everything, and that she totally wrote the book all by herself.... she donned a pair thick rimmed glasses. How very faux intellectual.

The poor woman is having a hard time having her fourth baby and finds she needs to tell all in her book. Fans gloat adoringly.

Is this the UK version of Angelina Jolie?

Even though the audio refers to this as episode #125, it is actually #126.

Due to a staff shortage, this week's episode is a quickie with a zeitgeist review and a fast miscellany that seems to focus on WikiLeaks.

Related links:
Upcoming Ballot Issues
SLAW on Library and Archives Canada lacking a digital archival strategy
The Toronto Star on Library and Archives Canada lacking a digital archival strategy
UK Deputy Prime Minister calls for investigation of allegations in WikiLeaks document dump -- Deutsche Welle
120 member task force to protect informants identified in WikiLeaks document dump -- The Voice of America
Almost 400,000 documents dumped by WikiLeaks -- The Register
Submissions to WikiLeaks suspended for now -- WikiLeaks itself
Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki claims WikiLeaks document dump meant to harm his chances of re-election -- The Voice of America
Embarassing confirmations in the document dump -- Instapundit
Generation Y not into texting -- The Register