As the birthplace of the American Library Association, the first research library and the iconic Free Library of Philadelphia, Philly is an important space for library history.
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Demoted and Doxed: What Happened When a Texas Librarian Fought to Keep LGBTQ Books on Her Shelves
For Hunt, who had spent more than 14 years helping students find books, the assignment felt like a betrayal of everything a librarian was supposed to do. “What kind of librarian takes books out of kids’ hands?” says Hunt, who attended Oak Run Middle School as a student and whose dad worked there as a sixth-grade reading teacher.
With school librarians in short supply, the Oklahoma education board begrudgingly grants 56 waivers | KGOU – Oklahoma’s NPR Source
The State Board of Education approved requests Thursday from 56 districts to reduce library hours or replace supervision with a library aide instead of a certified librarian.
“Hero” librarian sues after being fired for refusing to hide LGBTQ+ books from children – LGBTQ Nation
In her federal civil rights lawsuit, filed last week, Luanne James claims the Rutherford County Library board violated her freedom of speech and the 14th Amendment’s Equal Protection Clause when it voted 8-3 to remove her from her position. The board, she claims, engaged in “discrimination, retaliation, obstruction, intimidation, and threats against LGBTQ community members.”
Ten Stories That Shaped 2025
It’s time for our twenty-third look back at the notable library stories from the past year.
10. Tariffs Impact Interlibrary Loan
Caught up in the sweeping and haphazard tariffs enacted by the Trump administration this year was the use of international lending networks by research libraries.
9. AI Bots Ravage Library Websites
As a swarm of web crawlers seek to ingest anything and everything they can find, driven by the boom of “a vast scraping operation to build large language models (LLMs) that train generative AI programs,” many library servers found themselves under attack this year.
8. Grokpedia Forks Up Wikipedia
In October, Elon Musk launched an AI-driven encyclopedia, billed as an alternative to Wikipedia’s “propaganda.” Critics were quick to point out that Grokpedia, however, clearly shows its own bias.
Dishonorable Mention: Presidential Library Grift
Donald Trump has funneled money from multiple legal settlements, as well as an unconditional “gift” from Qatar in the form of a Boeing 747, into his presidential library fund, raising eyebrows. (see also, the Marc Rich scandal)
7. AI Guardrails Censor Library Searches
Love them or hate them, natural language searching, automated summaries, and other “artificial intelligence” features have become mainstream, even in the library vendor marketplace. One of the more curious quirks that cropped up this year, thanks to the outsourcing of chatbots which restrict information deemed harmful for liability purposes, was the observation that library discovery tools could be shown to limit certain results accordingly.
6. Whither IMLS?
In March, President Trump issued an executive order to eliminate the Institute for Museum and Library Services, a government agency that, among other things, helps fund some interlibrary loan programs. Layoffs and service cuts ensued, although a lawsuit challenging this order is currently making its way through the court system.
5. AI Lawsuits Aplenty
Several class-action lawsuits (targeting, for example, Meta, Midjourney, and Anthropic) are underway, thanks to the rampant practice of LLMs and the like obviously being trained on copyrighted materials without their owners’ permission. The insurance industry is retreating from covering such parasitic business models.
4. Political Firings
In May, shortly after a conservative group Tweeted, “The current #LibrarianOfCongress Carla Hayden is woke, anti-Trump, and promotes trans-ing kids,” Donald Trump fired the Obama-appointed Librarian of Congress. As explained by the White House Press Secretary, “There were quite concerning things that she had done at the Library of Congress in the pursuit of DEI and putting inappropriate books in the [national depository] library for children.” Trump also fired the head of the National Archives and the head of the Copyright Office this year.
Honorable Mention: The Return of Reading Rainbow
Don’t take my word for it, but in September, a reboot of the popular television series was announced. Library advocate Mychal Threets will be the new host.
3. Anti-DEI Policies Lead to Government Censorship
Throughout the year, the Trump administration has sought to remove government publications that conflict with its agenda. Victims of this campaign include topics such as STD prevention, African-American history, scientific data, race and gender studies, colonial evidence, climate change, and, last but possibly least, accessible typefaces.
2. Yet More Moral Panic Over Library Books
1. The AI Slop Avalanche
It’s no secret that chatbots, in their attempt to mimic human conversation, simply make stuff up. As this type of AI becomes more prevalent, libraries are feeling the impact of an increase in fake citations, procedurally–generated books, and other “AI slop.” It remains to be seen if we can prevent the “enshittification” of Internet content.
What are your predictions for 2026? How will the AI bubble impact libraries?
Looking for Hidden Gems in Scientific Literature
Looking for Hidden Gems in Scientific Literature
Why do research papers remain in obscurity, does it matter if they do, and what can be done to redeem them? They may be hard to find to begin with, if published in poorly indexed or low visibility journals or in a foreign language. Alternatively, they may be relatively easy to find but still be neglected if they are ahead of their time and not recognized as important at the time of publication (such papers are called sleeping beauties). It could also be that obscure papers are truly of low quality and are thus justifiably neglected.
ode to libraries (the book ones)
Not just for working. Use it for thinking, for reconnecting, writing or creating. The library is a sanctuary where your mind slows down, even though the world outside keeps running. Maybe you’ve been postponing to think, to reflect, to spend time by yourself, like I did before I discovered my local library. You’ll find some kind of joy and productivity in there. We don’t have so many pure-good organizations in our world. We should appreciate them while we still have them.
How a food crisis in India fed America’s library collections
he 132-year-old University of Chicago houses more than 800,000 volumes related to South Asia, making it one of the world's premier collections for studies on the region. But how did such a treasure trove of South Asian literature end up there?
The answer lies in a programme called PL-480, a US initiative launched in 1954 under Public Law 480, also known as the Food for Peace, a hallmark of Cold War diplomacy.
Ten Stories That Shaped 2024
According to ChatGTP, below are the main themes of this year’s library headlines (using Library Link of the Day as the source):
- Library Governance and Legislation:
Highlighting state legislation targeting librarians, legal battles in Alabama and Idaho, and the impact of controversial policies leading to resignations and job losses among library staff. - Censorship and Book Bans:
Widespread attempts to ban books, especially those with LGBTQ+ themes or diverse characters, coupled with legal challenges and legislative measures against censorship. - Technological Advances and Digital Challenges:
The role of AI in libraries, the migration from physical to digital collections, and the associated risks like data breaches and digital repository reliability. - AI and Its Ethical Implications:
Ethical and legal challenges surrounding generative AI, including copyright issues, quality concerns of AI-generated content, and its impact on traditional publishing. - Libraries and Societal Conflicts:
Ongoing conflicts between public libraries and various societal or government entities, involving censorship debates and clashes over controversial content. - Academic Integrity and Plagiarism:
Issues of plagiarism and academic integrity, emphasized by the rise of AI-generated content and legal disputes over improper citation practices. - The Role of Libraries in Modern Society:
Libraries’ evolving roles in education, digital equity, community health, and their function as safe havens and spaces for mental health advocacy. - Cultural Impacts:
The cultural significance of libraries and the publishing industry, including notable lawsuits, the role of book fairs, and the societal importance of accessible literature. - Crisis and Advocacy:
Libraries and librarians facing job losses, threats, underfunding, and advocacy efforts highlighting their resilience and resistance against these pressures. - Educational and Community Services:
Libraries adapting to meet educational needs, offering health and wellness classes, acting as community centers, and serving broader societal purposes in the face of various challenges.
What was your favorite story of 2024?
A Shadow Librarian: Fighting Back Against Encroaching Capitalism
DEF CON 32 – A Shadow Librarian: Fighting Back Against Encroaching Capitalism
“I am fucking dangerous, I am a public librarian”
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