Libraries are expanding their role, from social workers to helping homeless patrons. But some say staff are stretched too thin.
https://www.startribune.com/st-paul-libraries-face-moment-of-reckoning/600239371/
Libraries are expanding their role, from social workers to helping homeless patrons. But some say staff are stretched too thin.
https://www.startribune.com/st-paul-libraries-face-moment-of-reckoning/600239371/
Brent Reidy, the new director of Research Libraries, said he hoped to help democratize the 127-year-old library by reaching a younger generation.
It’s again time (for the 20th time!) for a look back at the notable library stories from the last year.
10. Lizzo at LOC
In September, Lizzo toured the Library of Congress, stopping to play a crystal flute that once belonged to James Madison.
9. New Federal Open Access Memo
In August, another federal policy guideline was released encouraging publishers "to make the results of taxpayer-supported research immediately available to the American public at no cost."
8. More Institutions End Late Fees
Libraries continue to drop the policy of assessing late fees for books returned past their due date.
7. Controlled Digital Lending Gains Support
News flash: libraries are allowed to lend books. And there is no legal provision restricting the format for doing so. Controlled Digital Lending makes use of this, although the practice faces challenges.
6. WorldCat Monopoly Continues
After making waves by announcing a new, free shared catalog service called "MetaDoor," Clarivate responded to a lawsuit against the plan from OCLC by shuttering the project.
5. Theft of Presidential Documents
Unless you were hiding under a rock this year, you heard the story of a certain former President making off with confidential records.
4. Library Vendors and Surveillance Capitalism
The practices of several companies in the library industry also profiting from the monetization of personal data have made for an uneasy mix with privacy advocates.
3. E-Book Licensing Hits Snags
Multiple efforts to curtail publisher moves at making more restrictive electronic book agreements, including in Connecticut, Maryland, and New York, resulted in limited success.
2. Labor Disputes Aplenty
As documented in multiple reports and studies, library workers are enduring many hostilities in their working environments. It’s little wonder, then, that many worker movements happened in response this year, including in Illinois, Texas, and Washington.
1. Book Bannings Continue
The ongoing and very widespread challenges to library materials is again this year’s top story. How has your library been impacted?
Few parents are demanding censorship but rightwing politicians are passing restrictive laws nevertheless
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/feb/21/books-bans-gag-orders-suppress-discussion-racism-lgbtq-us-schools
spooooky
While real-world libraries are, sadly, corporeally and temporally fixed (and, as far as I know, have never employed an orangutan as Head Librarian), there are still plenty of examples of libraries around the world that are secret or restricted, dealing with very different kinds of texts to the public libraries we know and love. While several of these libraries have now opened up, at least partially, their histories are still fascinating, and learning about them has that special spark of uncovering a secret.
“This is a safe space. It should be a safe space no matter what we face with the mandates in the pandemic,” said librarian Jessica Elias
Librarians in Boston united in solidarity on Saturday, holding a rally to push back after several incidents that they say have disrupted staff and library patrons.
Staff and supporters gathered in front of the main branch in Copley Square in a sign of unity and kindness.
“This is a safe space. It should be a safe space no matter what we face with the mandates in the pandemic,” said librarian Jessica Elias.
https://www.nbcboston.com/news/coronavirus/boston-librarians-hold-rally-after-workers-harassed-by-anti-mask-protesters/2649967/
How time flies! Once again we look back at the memorable events of the past year.
10. More Libraries End Late Fines
Libraries continue to make headlines for discontinuing the assessment of financial penalties for returning books late. Not only does this practice help get overdue books returned, it promotes equitable access to library collections.
9. Cape Town Library Damaged by Fire
In April, a fire partially destroyed the main library at the University of Cape Town. Recovery efforts are still underway.
8. Taylor Swift…?
Not one but two copyright stories this year involved Taylor Swift: the dubious practice of the police playing her songs to avoid being live streamed, and the musician having to re-record her hits in order to regain ownership of them.
The Lighter Side: "Library Rap" Raises Eyebrows
All I can say about this story is to watch the video yourself, if you can get through it.
7. University of California Re-Ups with Elsevier
After a long standoff over pricing and author rights, the University of California agreed to again subscribe to the for-profit publisher’s titles.
6. Supply Chain Issues in Publishing
Shipping delays and understaffing hit many economic sectors this year, and the books trade was no exception.
5. "Illegal Aliens" LCSH Retired
After over a decade of controversy, the Library of Congress approved a change to their "Illegal Aliens" subject heading in November, replacing it with the terms "Noncitizens" and "Illegal Immigration," prompting an outcry from Senator Ted Cruz.
Dishonorable Mention: NFTs
Librarians are all too familiar with the contrived scarcity imposed on electronic formats by commercial interests. This year, the hype train that is non-fungible tokens reached fever pitch, causing concerns over their environmental impact.
4. Controlled Digital Lending
Whither libraries in the Internet Age? One answer is the use of metered circulation mechanisms that allow for libraries to "lend" electronic copies of materials. Commercial publishers, unsurprisingly, would prefer to set their own prices.
3. Cancel/Consequence Culture
The publishing industry has always had its fair share of scandals. This year’s controversies involved Josh Hawley, Doctor Seuss, Alex Gino, Alice Sebold, Captain Underpants, and Phillip Roth.
2. Covid Exacerbated by Misinformation
Ahmed Baba describes the situation perfectly: "It’s important to directly state that Republicans and right-wing media have spent this year blatantly sabotaging Biden’s COVID response while simultaneously criticizing him for not getting COVID totally under control. It’s a deliberate strategy and it’s unfortunately working."
1. Book Banning Intensifies
This perennial entry takes the top spot this year due to the drastic rise (or "dramatic uptick," to quote the ALA) in challenges led by conservatives to library books.
What was your favorite library story of 2021?
Here’s my annual look back at some of the notable library headlines from this year. Can you guess what number one is?
10. News Flash: Prejudice Still Exists
The problem of algorithms propagating bias continues to be an important issue in our field.
9. More Elsevier Cancellations
Following the University of California’s break with their expensive subscription costs in 2019, other libraries have joined the cause.
8. The USPS Slowdown
As libraries rely upon the mail for many services, such as interlibrary loan, the problems with the postal service before the election was a story worth following.
Honorable Mention: Curbside Videos
On the lighter side, several libraries created innovative marketing materials for their adjusted pick-up procedures due to COVID-19.
7. Scandals Roundup
Issues attracting bad publicity this year included the beleaguered American Dirt release; former Baltimore mayor Catherine Pugh’s fraud conviction; the removal of Gone with the Wind from the airwaves; the weeding process at New Zealand’s National Library; toner theft from the Austin library; and J.K. Rowling’s dubious attempt to convince people that transgender people can be criminals by penning a novel featuring a transgender criminal.
6. Proctorio’s Bonkers Surveillance Practices
Online test taking had a bit of a moment this year, for obvious reasons. The methods employed by exam proctoring software, however, have raised several eyebrows.
5. The Internet Archive’s National Emergency Library
Due to the closure of many physical library buildings, the nonprofit organization running the digital library at archive.org opened its texts for free viewing, much to the chagrin of commercial publishers. An ensuing lawsuit had the desired effect: the project was shut down. The fair use practice of online story hours faced similar threats.
Dishonorable Mention: Bad Patron Behavior
Librarians adjusting their service models due to the pandemic this year were often challenged by patrons with unrealistic and uninformed expectations about how libraries should be operating, not to mention blatant acts of rudeness.
4. Vaccine Hunt Fraught with IP Issues
Ah, capitalism. The search for a COVID-19 vaccine was driven, and perhaps hindered by, interests of those seeking to monetize the cure.
3. Bookstores Challenge Amazon
Amazon reaped in record profits this year, while several brick-and-mortar stores closed their doors for good. The efforts of Bookshop.org to compete with the retail giant received some much needed attention.
2. Misinformation Endangers Lives, Democracy
Conspiracy theories about the coronavirus abounded this year, causing an untold number of unnecessary deaths. And earlier this month, a poll of Republican congressman discovered that just ten percent of them will say who won the presidential election. As for librarians, if our mission is to slay ignorance, our role in combating bad information remains unclear.
1. #closethelibraries due to COVID-19
With a few notable exceptions, library leaders were excessively slow to shut down their buildings in order to protect the health of their workers and clientele. A campaign to close the libraries spread before many of the closures finally occurred. How libraries will reopen in 2021 is yet to be seen.
What was your favorite story of 2020?
The Lit Line (206-386-4656) isn’t necessarily a newfangled idea, SPL librarian Robin Rousu told me. It’s pretty old. Rousu has been a librarian with SPL for 15 years. She used to run the Dial-a-Story program where kids were encouraged to call a number to get a story read to them. That program was built around the idea of landlines. So, naturally, it’s since faded from relevance. But, the infrastructure and the idea were perfect for the COVID-19 era.
From: https://www.thestranger.com/slog/2020/07/22/44139355/seattle-public-librarians-just-want-to-read-you-stories Seattle Public Librarians Just Want to Read You Stories – Slog – The Stranger
NPR reports that one-third of museums in the United States are at risk of closure in 2020 due to the continuing coronavirus crisis. Their story was based upon a survey conducted by the American Alliance of Museums.
Recent Comments