TomeBoy pointed the way to Barbara Quint’s Column in which she says combination of forces is putting pressure on the information profession. Oddly enough, one of the pressure points is ourselves and our “Open Access” movement.
“So what does this all mean? Fewer, Better Libraries run by Fewer, Better Librarians. And what about the rest of the profession? Where do they go for employment? Do they retreat to battle lines against the oncoming forces? Do they cling to children’s reading rooms? Do they end up penning anti-digital diatribes for publication in print issues of the Flat World Monthly?”
Gotta Support bq
Let’s face it. Every profession faces some major challenge due to technology. Better, Faster, Cheaper. Think autoworkers and robots, or any profession that feels the sting from the change. Redefining the roles in any profession is a difficult time, but not necessarily a bad thing either. A traditional MLS alone won’t cut it in the future, and the academic programs are already changing to reflect it. Digital information management, web development, competitive intelligence. That doesn’t lessen the pain when a library or librarian is cut.
And I’m not just saying these kind words because bq’s is my editor (I write the Better Mousetrap column). I just believe that she’s usually spot on with industry/professional trends.