Challenges for libraries in the face of a changing information environment: Library 2.0, intellectual freedom, librarian ethics
Paul Neuhaus, a reference librarian at Santa Clara University, has assembled a wiki of state laws on the confidentiality of library records. This is a great resource providing instant access to the relevant statutes, such as New York's: New York…
Read More Wiki of State Laws on the Confidentiality of Library Records
Continuing the theme of libraries, privacy, and intellectual freedom from a few weeks ago, two items popped up in my blogroll today: Wired's Threat Level tells an incredible story about the plight of two Connecticut librarians who received national security…
Read More A Bit More on Libraries, Privacy, and Intellectual Freedom
Following up - again - on recent posts on libraries and privacy here and at Chronicles of Dissent, CoD has received a response from the makers of the CASSIE Internet access management system. Excerpts from their e-mail exchange: 1. Can…
Following up on recent posts on libraries and privacy here and at Chronicles of Dissent, CoD contacted Deborah Caldwell-Stone, a Deputy Director at the American Library Association, for reactions of some of the issues we've been discussing. Regarding concerns about…
One of the more pleasant unintended consequences of my dissertation research was unearthing how the values of privacy, autonomy, and freedom of inquiry are central to the institution of the public library. I argue that libraries serve as spheres of…
Rory Litwin at the excellent Library Juice blog suggests three things we can do to remind ourselves why privacy matters: Recall specific occasions in your life when you realized you needed to make some information about yourself more private, or…
Chronicles of Dissent points to some discouraging trends at public libraries that potentially threaten patron anonymity and privacy. First, it appears more and more libraries are requiring those wishing to use their Internet services to produce a valid library card.…
Library Juice posts a wonderful essay by Tracy Nectoux, a library student at UIUC, who was assigned to visit a bookstore and compare the atmosphere to a library’s atmosphere. I think it's helpful to take the comparison one step further…
Inspired by a presentation by Olivia Nellums at the Identity & Identification in a Networked World symposium, one of my post-dissertation research projects will be on the privacy issues related to increased use of RFID tags in libraries. Luckily, Don…
I recently discovered Don Wood's blog Library 2.0 (thanks Library Juice!). Don is the Program Officer/Communications at the American Library Association's Office for Intellectual Freedom, whose goals is to educate librarians and the general public about the nature and importance…
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