scholarly journals Homelessness and the Ethics of Information Access

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Corina Bardoff
Keyword(s):  
Social Justice ◽  
Recent Literature ◽  
Public Libraries ◽  
Information Access ◽  
Public Library ◽  
Body Odor ◽  
Access To Information ◽  
Strong Body

Many public libraries have rules against strong body odor, bringing large amounts of luggage into the library, sleeping, and bathing in restrooms. These rules disproportionately affect library patrons who are experiencing homelessness. This paper reviews recent literature that considers legal and social justice perspectives on homelessness and libraries, as well as the policies of four urban public library systems. Though these rules may be legal and are widely used, people without homes have no other access to information. This paper concludes that blocking their access conflicts with the mission of public libraries to provide information to all.This is an Accepted Manuscript of an article published by Taylor & Francis Group in The Serials Librarian on 18/12/2015, available online: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/0361526X.2015.1099590.

scholarly journals "You don’t come to the library to look at porn and stuff like that": Filtering software in public libraries

2014 ◽  
Vol 38 (117) ◽  
pp. 5-19
Author(s):  
Louise Cooke ◽  
Rachel Spacey ◽  
Claire Creaser ◽  
Adrienne Muir
Keyword(s):  
Social Norms ◽  
Public Libraries ◽  
Public Library ◽  
Library Services ◽  
Internet Services ◽  
Access To Information ◽  
Policies And Procedures ◽  
The Social

Should public libraries filter the content of internet services offered to their users? We discuss this question in the light of findings from the AHRC-funded MAIPLE project, which has been investigating measures taken by UK Public Library Services to manage public internet provision in their libraries. Initial findings suggest that filtering software is extensively used, and that librarians and users alike are mostly content with this solution. It could be argued that this position is at odds with our professional and ethical duties towards clients to provide uninhibited access to information and ideas. However, we recognise the social norms and realities in which services must operate and go on to discuss clear and transparent policies and procedures that public libraries might adopt to mitigate the potential for misuse of their internet facilities.

scholarly journals PERAN BUKU DAN PERPUSTAKAAN DALAM DEMOKRATISASI INFORMASI

2015 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Faisal Syarifudin
Keyword(s):  
Information Literacy ◽  
Public Libraries ◽  
Public Library ◽  
Access To Information ◽  
Global Era ◽  
Filter Process ◽  
Information Media ◽  
Development Participation ◽  
Printed Materials ◽  
Democratic Life

Democratization of information is a manifestation of a nation's democratic life in which people participate in all aspect of development. Participation requires openness and freedom to get access to information. Availability of information in the global era must be accompanied by competence to filter, process and utilize information, which is known as information literacy. Among various formats of information media, printed materials especially books are mostly preferred because they are easy and convenient to use. Books as information media are closely related to libraries, particularly public libraries which are the most democratic and enable all members of community to interact with information and knowledge. However, it is unfortunate that public libraries and libraries in general have not been given proper attention in Indonesia. Keywords : information literacy, public libraries, public library manifesto

Changes in Customer Behavior

2011 ◽  
pp. 230-236
Author(s):  
R. Wright Rix
Keyword(s):  
Information Literacy ◽  
Public Libraries ◽  
Information Access ◽  
Public Library ◽  
The Internet ◽  
Research Information ◽  
The Public ◽  
The Past ◽  
Customer Preferences ◽  
Online Tools

Today’s library customers exhibit a decreasing tendency to regard the public library as the primary local repository of research information. The rise of the Internet is at the root of this and many other changes that have taken place in public libraries during the past twenty years. Customer preferences have shifted away from print tools in favor of the simplest available online tools. A pervasive user expectation is that information access should be free, easy, and immediate. Information literacy issues continue to occupy a growing portion of librarians’ time. As customer needs and expectations evolve, so must the library’s services and products.

Revisiting the High John experiment through a contemporary lens

2021 ◽  
pp. 096100062199643
Author(s):  
Laurier L. Cress
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Information Science ◽  
Public Libraries ◽  
Information Access ◽  
Historical Analysis ◽  
Public Library ◽  
Community Outreach ◽  
The United States ◽  
Global Scale ◽  
Disadvantaged Communities

In 1967, the University of Maryland’s School of Library and Information Services created a public library in Prince George’s County, Maryland, named the High John Experiment, to give Librarianship and Information Science students experience serving disadvantaged communities and to discover new methods to better serve these communities. From the creation of High John to the present day, University of Maryland publications and unaffiliated works credit High John as a groundbreaking experiment that propelled interests in diversity and inclusion in public libraries. High John’s creators published a 73 paged report for the United States’ Office of Education, accompanied by published articles, that confirms a violation of ethics toward the community High John served. The community was not involved in the implementation or planning of the library and many of the services and materials the library offered were based on prejudiced assumptions instead of community input or research. Although High John garnered supporters, the validity and ethicality behind High John’s intent and methods were called into question during the experiment. The controversy led to debates within the field that resulted in conversations about Librarianship and Information Science pedagogy and appropriate methods in outreach and community engagement for disadvantaged communities. Now that the passionately fueled debates on High John have ceased, the experiment is a distant memory. Although this experiment led to debates about diversity, inclusion, and equity in information access within the United States, this experiment is relevant to information readers on a global scale. Because Librarianship and Information Science has a history rooted in elitism and oppression worldwide, High John warrants further exposure and examination from a diverse pool of contemporary perspectives. Through the application of modern community outreach and engagement practices, this article builds on a critical historical analysis of the experiment and argues High John failed in its mission and violated the community’s trust that it purported to serve.

scholarly journals Balancing Print and Electronic Collections in Public Libraries: Perspectives for a Changing World

2021 ◽  
Vol 16 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Cassandra Larose
Keyword(s):  
Public Libraries ◽  
Electronic Materials ◽  
Public Library ◽  
Access To Information ◽  
Social Growth ◽  
Resource Limitations ◽  
Digital World ◽  
Print Materials ◽  
Ease Of Access ◽  
Shelter Services

Public libraries are of vital importance to their communities, providing access to information, shelter, services, and serving as an anchor for economic and social growth. As public libraries adapt to an increasingly digital world, they must address the balance of print and electronic materials to ensure that users have access to what they want and need. While public libraries’ print collections are decreasing at a slower rate than those of their academic counterparts, they are also facing increasing pressure to offer materials electronically. Public libraries must address challenges in tracking usage statistics as well as their users’ attitudes towards ebooks and print materials. Resource issues must be addressed, including costs and staffing. An increased desire for flexible space within library branches may also be a consideration impacting print collections. In addressing issues of accessibility, both print and electronic materials may create barriers in some instances while increasing access in others. The closure of many public library spaces during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 has introduced new issues, including limitations to access of print materials, new ease of access to online materials, and additional resource limitations as libraries work with limited budgets and staff. While the shift to online services during the COVID-19 pandemic has likely sped up the transition to increasing availability of online resources in public libraries, an appetite for print materials remains.

scholarly journals Learning from Pandemic Mode to Create a Sustainable Digital Future

2021 ◽  
Vol 5 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Kim M. Thompson ◽  
Amanda Reed
Keyword(s):  
South Carolina ◽  
Public Libraries ◽  
Information Access ◽  
Public Library ◽  
Social Contact ◽  
Information Communication ◽  
Digital Inclusion ◽  
Public Crisis ◽  
Practical Evaluation ◽  
Evaluative Processes

Public libraries are known as places for information, communication, and gathering, but what happens when a pandemic restricts social contact? In the years 2020 and 2021, in response to the coronavirus pandemic, libraries worldwide revised services and explored new ways to provide information and support to communities—primarily through digital services. This conceptual analytical paper responds to this approach by suggesting the use of a tripartite information access and digital inclusion model that can be used for evaluative processes related to ensuring ongoing physical, intellectual, and social access to public library services during a public crisis shutdown. We provide an overview of some of the new and altered services provided within the case of the Richland Library system in South Carolina, USA, and then discuss these changes using the tripartite model as a means to illustrate how this theoretical model can be employed for practical evaluation and decision-making.

Reuse of the transparency-related information posted on Spanish library and archive websites

2021 ◽  
pp. 016555152110597
Author(s):  
Luis Fernando Ramos Simón ◽  
Ana R Pacios
Keyword(s):  
Public Sector ◽  
Public Libraries ◽  
Information Access ◽  
Public Information ◽  
Access To Information ◽  
Related Information ◽  
Public Sector Information ◽  
The Right ◽  
Right Of Access

This study addresses the types of formats and ease of reuse of transparency-related information available on the websites of 53 national public libraries and 53 provincial historic archives. Further to Spain’s Transparency Act, reuse of public sector information is one of the elements comprising the right of access to information. Access and use must consequently be ensured to enable citizens and businesses to reuse all available data. The working methodology deployed here consisted in searching for, identifying and analysing the transparency-related documents carried on library and archive websites and the legal warnings governing their reuse. The findings revealed a wide variety of formats and rules governing reuse and indications of scant interest in these institutions in fostering the transparency and reuse of public information. Even when available, reusable information was normally found to be posted either separately from the data furnished by libraries and archives directly or positioned on pages or sections with complex access paths.

Information as currency, democracy, and public libraries

2018 ◽  
Vol 39 (5) ◽  
pp. 295-306 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christine Stilwell
Keyword(s):  
Public Libraries ◽  
Public Library ◽  
Access To Information ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Public ◽  
The Usa ◽  
Access To Knowledge ◽  
Current Concerns

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to endorse the notion that information is the currency of democracy and explore the question of the public library’s role in promoting democracy through the provision of access to information. Design/methodology/approach A review of the literature and a case study are used. Findings From the early days of the public library, there has been a certain democratic paternalism in librarians’ views on public libraries, and ambivalence about the extent to which these libraries have provided information to the whole population. Despite this finding, the paper explores the public library’s role in providing information; the currency of information. Public libraries can contribute to the renewal of a democratic public sphere by providing free and ready access to knowledge and information, as well as safe and trusted social spaces for the exchange of ideas, creativity, and decision making. Originality/value The paper examines material from the dawn of the public library to current concerns about the role of these libraries in providing access to information, in revitalising citizenship and fostering democracy. It draws on the well-known example of the birth of democracy in South Africa and on discussions of public library neutrality and activism in contemporary France, describing limits on the achievements of libraries in these countries in the context of some current, promising examples from the USA, Britain, Denmark, and Australia.

scholarly journals Educating and Empowering Teen Activists in Public Libraries: A Case Study of the Impact of Reading on Young Adult Social Justice Actions

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jennifer McDevitt
Keyword(s):  
Social Justice ◽  
Public Libraries ◽  
Social Activism ◽  
Public Library ◽  
Design Data ◽  
Reader Response Theory ◽  
Library Programming ◽  
Justice Movements ◽  
The Impact

This participatory case study, which consisted of a co-designed virtual program through the Camrose Public Library, investigates how teen readers engage with the social justice themes in YA fiction, how and if they find these themes useful for understanding and engaging in activism on their own, and the influence of public library programming on these actions. I approached my research from a teen-centred perspective, inviting the youth who participated to make adjustments to each stage of the process. My research design, data collection, and data analysis were informed by critical ethnography as theory and reader-response theory. This case study found that, on their own, neither social activism narratives nor library programs motivate teens to conduct social justice actions; instead, they contribute to a network of learning opportunities and information that leads to teens becoming motivated to make a difference in their communities. Thus, public libraries can provide teen programming that uses social activism narratives and collaborative discussions to teach teens more about social justice issues, show them how to get involved in social justice movements, and instill in them the confidence to do so.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document