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Emily Drew writes: “New York Comic Con and New York Public Library teamed up for the first time on October 5 to enhance the convention’s offerings to educators and librarians. Following in the footsteps of the collaboration between San Diego Comic-Con and San Diego Public Library, Professional Day’s 24 sessions were held throughout the day in NYPL’s historic Stephen A. Schwarzman Building.”...
AL: The Scoop, July 28, Oct. 10 |
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Since 1996, the FCC has been required to release reports assessing the country’s state of advanced telecommunications capability and to adopt measures to further broadband deployments. On October 6, ALA submitted comments to the FCC raising two issues particularly relevant to libraries: first, the criteria and standards for broadband deployment to public institutions like libraries and schools; second, the role of mobile internet access in connecting consumers to information....
District Dispatch, Oct. 9 |
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The Texas Library Association and the Florida Library Association are accepting donations and leading the response efforts to libraries damaged by Hurricanes Harvey, Irma, and Maria in their respective states. ALA encourages you to assist them. The ALA Disaster Relief Fund is supporting library relief efforts in the Caribbean islands, Mexico, and Puerto Rico. The Association is partnering with Florida International University Library and its Digital Library of the Caribbean staff on assisting those in the Caribbean....
ALA Chapter Relations Office; International Relations Office |
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Ashley Cooksey writes: “Are you celebrating Digital Citizenship Week, October 16–20? In a world where we are constantly bombarded with fake news, Photoshopped pictures, social media at its peak, and multiple digital devices in almost every household, it is imperative that we, as digital leaders, instruct students in digital citizenship. How can we instill positive digital citizenship in our students while making meaningful, personal connections?”...
Knowledge Quest Blog, Oct. 10 |
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Powerful wildfires fanned by strong winds ravaged parts of Northern California’s wine country on October 9, killing at least 13 people and destroying some 1,500 structures. One of those buildings was Cardinal Newman High School in Santa Rosa. The tragedy struck as its 600 students were getting ready for homecoming, which will at least be delayed. The school’s principal estimates that up to 18 of the 35 classrooms were burned, including the school library....
KNTV-TV, San José, Calif., Oct. 10 |
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An Oregon man was banned for six months from the Baker County (Oreg.) Public Library after he admitted to hiding DVDs that contained LGBTQ content. Starting in October 2016, librarians noticed DVDs disappearing from the shelves. Over the course of about seven months, seven DVDs were found misplaced in odd places. Staff soon realized all of the hidden movies involved same-sex couples and they eventually discovered the culprit, a patron who had complained about materials he objected to....
KATU-TV, Portland, Oreg., Oct. 10; WFXG-TV, Augusta, Ga., Oct. 10 |
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Kate MacMillan writes: “School libraries can be safe havens for LGBTQ students. Libraries can provide materials that reflect their realities and resonate with their situations. Shannon Oltmann’s JRLYA paper, “They Kind of Rely on the Library”: School Librarians Serving LGBT Students, talks about the need for LGBTQ materials. She also cites some discouraging studies showing that ‘a lack of LGBTQ-themed literature can send a message to LGBTQ teens that the school library is not the place for them.’”...
Knowledge Quest blog, Oct. 9; Journal of Research on Libraries and Young Adults, Mar. 18, 2016 |
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Jill Lepore writes: “Restricting speech is like trying to waltz with a wolf. Every hate-speech code that has been challenged in court has been found unconstitutional. Some have been lifted, others disavowed. Nevertheless, a generation has come of age knowing nothing but the wolf. If the commitment to these difficult freedoms has sometimes flagged, it has just as often been renewed. Free speech is not a week or a place. It is a long and strenuous argument, as maddening as the past and as painful as the truth.”...
The New Yorker, Oct. 9
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danah boyd writes: “At this moment, AI is at the center of every business conversation. Companies, governments, and researchers are obsessed with data. So are adversarial actors. We are currently seeing an evolution in how data is being manipulated. If we believe that data can and should be used to inform people and fuel technology, we need to start building the infrastructure necessary to limit the corruption and abuse of that data. In short, I think we need to reconsider what security looks like in a data-driven world.”...
Data and Society: Points, Oct. 4; O’Reilly YouTube channel, Sept. 29 |
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The Yale University Beinecke Library’s extensive holdings in children’s literature will soon grow with the addition of the archive of renowned YA author Judy Blume, opening new opportunities for future research, teaching, and exhibitions. The Judy Blume archive spans more than four decades and documents the writing of more than 20 of her books. In addition to manuscript material, it also documents the reception of Blume’s work, from censorship and banning to grateful outpourings from legions of fans....
Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library, Oct. 7 |
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The “Autism Welcome Here: Library Programs, Services and More” grant honors the work of Libraries and Autism: We’re Connected cofounder Meg Kolaya for her contributions in promoting inclusion. Each year, a total of $5,000 will be awarded. All types of libraries in the US or Canada are encouraged to apply. Proposals can fund projects and services directed to any age group. Applications will be accepted through December 1....
Libraries and Autism: We’re Connected |
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“Not to lend books is a type of homicide,” according to Stephen Langton’s 13th-century commentary on Deuteronomy. There is a popular perception that medieval libraries comprised rows of chained books, which were never allowed out of sight. Such chained libraries did exist (an example is that at Hereford, and many British Library manuscripts were clearly once chained), but people have always exchanged, borrowed, and shared their books. Here are some examples drawn from the British Library’s collections....
British Library: Medieval Manuscripts Blog, Oct. 9
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