July 1, 2009 | Link This | Email this | Comments (1)

So, Christie Hefner, whom the American Library Association (ALA) describes as "a passionate advocate of freedom of expression, social justice, equal rights and opportunities for women," will be Opening Session speaker at the 2009 ALA Annual Conference in Chicago. (The session will be held from 5:30 to 7 p.m. on July 11 at McCormick Place West.)

Surely Hefner is, as ALA says, an "ardent defender  of First Amendment rights" responsible for the creation, in 1979, of the Hugh M. Hefner First Amendment Awards. And surely she's made significant efforts to increase opportunities for women in both the political and corporate r...Read More

Industries: ALA Annual Conference News, News & Features

June 30, 2009 | Link This | Email this | Comments (2)

So, did the New York Public Library (NYPL) face pressure not to purchase Michael Gross’s new book Rogues’ Gallery, an unauthorized exposé of the Metropolitan Museum? 

The New York Observer on June 16 questioned whether the absence of the book in the catalog was related to complaints against the book filed by Annette de la Renta, who is a trustee of both the museum and the library.

The book’s editor, Peter Gethers, told the...Read More

Industries: Legislation, Managing Libraries

June 23, 2009 | Link This | Email this | Comments (1)

There are some good arguments for library consolidation--why can't you take out books from all systems with one card?--among the three systems serving New York City, and there are some arguments against it. 

A recent piece on WNYC, the local National Public Radio station, did a decent job airing the debate, but missed one key element: the role of private fundraising.

Former New York Public Library (NYPL) union head Ray...Read More

June 17, 2009 | Link This | Email this | Comments (0)

It's time to soup up the library courier truck. The Johnson County Library, Shawnee Mission, KS, now has four specially decorated, literary-themed trucks: Captain Ahab’s Fine Seafood, Benjamin Button’s Diaper Service, Kafka’s Pest Kontrol, and Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde’s Pharmacy. Credit the Barkley Advertising Agency in Kansas City, MO, for the message and the photos.

Said County Librarian Donna Lauffer, "Often we promote all the services and resources the library has... We tend to overlook why most people come to the library:...Read More

Industries: Managing Libraries

June 15, 2009 | Link This | Email this | Comments (0)

Anaheim, CA, librarian Scott Douglas, author of the "humor memoir" Quiet, Please (LJ Q&A) and contributor of "Dispatches from a Public Librarian" to McSweeney's, has another sardonic dispatch out, titled, The Librarian: A Twitter Story.

If you're wondering whether the oddities of library life/work can be boiled down to Twitter length, well, Douglas has definitely mastered the form. My two favorite lines:

When people ask what I do at work, I can tell them I help mentally challenged people stalk celebrities. How can I not like this job? 

Man says computer turned off and he didn't do anything. Late...Read More
Industries: Library Culture, Managing Libraries, News & Features