Are Libraries Limited, Obsolete? A Furious Debate in Kansas (and Beyond)
-- Library Journal, 10/9/2006
An op-ed in the Lawrence Journal World, KS, headlined "Libraries are limited, obsolete," has set off a firestorm of online debate in response. The author University of Kansas Business School professor Mark Hirschey, challenged the plans for a new downtown library, arguing that libraries fall short behind the Internet in providing convenient information and that computers should better be dispersed; that a librarian shouldn't be relied on as much as "multiple information providers" that "make fact checking easy and reliable;" and that libraries are far less interactive than modern information technology. His solution: broadband for all, perhaps via free Internet cafes or even city-provided computers for the poor.
One commenter who likes borrowing books from librariees agreed that broadband access was needed, but a library was also needed. A librarian responded that, not only is there much information not available on the Internet—or at least not for free—even if it were, "Knowledge is a very different thing from information." The online commentary jumped over to several blogs. Michael Stephens offered "Ten Things I Know About Libraries." Sarah Houghton, Librarian in Black, offered her own pointed response. John Blyberg of the Ann Arbor District Library suggested that librarians do more than just reflexively refute the arguments. "While I fundamentally disagree with his conclusions, he's raising a number of very serious and reasonable concerns. While his opinion may not be shared by the majority of his community, it's an indication of what's to come," Blyberg wrote. "Because, as much as we do not want to admit it, there is some truth to those arguments. Libraries are neophyte marketers in a world where perception and opinion trumps logic and truth. So we can circle the wagons and remind ourselves how important we are, or we can be pragmatic and do something about this."
