The EveryLibrary Institute, the companion organization of library advocacy group EveryLibrary, commissioned Embold Research, a nonpartisan research firm, to poll 1,223 U.S. voters on book banning. The survey found that nearly all (92 percent) have heard at least something about such censorship, and at least 75 percent will consider the issue of book banning when voting this November.

While most people think of postcards as inexpensive media showing iconic places, they may not realize the opportunities that postcards can hold for understanding the past. The Chicago-based Newberry Library houses one of the largest collections of postcards in the United States.

Disability in Publishing, a United States–based organization of disabled individuals who work in traditional publishing, launched in late July via a virtual town hall. The group’s mission to “create community, provide resources, and increase accessibility across the industry in order to increase disability visibility and retain the talent of disabled publishing professionals” was well represented in the highly accessible event, which was simulcast on YouTube and Twitter and attended by people who are personally disabled and others looking to make their organizations more inclusive. 

LJ focuses on the most promising debut novels for fall, with titles ranging widely in theme and genre. 

COVID shifts drove falling print circ and rising ebooks. But will it last? LJ's 2021 Materials Survey looks at some of the last year's trends.

This is the 13th year of the LJ Index of Public Library Service and Star Library ratings. The 2020 scores and ratings are based on FY18 data from the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) Public Library Survey (PLS). Because of that delay, they don’t reflect the impact of the coronavirus; that won’t be reflected in the data until 2022. The big news in this year’s edition is that successful retrievals of electronic information (e-retrievals)—measuring usage of online content, such as databases, other than by title checkout—joins the six other measures that determine the LJ Index.

Whether librarians are providing services in-person or virtually, reference has changed with the pandemic.

Library Journal’s annual Placements & Salaries survey reports on the experiences of LIS students who graduated and sought their first librarian jobs in the previous year: in this case, 2019. Salaries and full-time employment are up, but so are unemployment and the gender gap; 2019 graduates faced a mixed job market even before the pandemic.

The abstract linked below was posted today by The Journal of Academic Librarianship. Title Ethical Issues and Learning Analytics: Are Academic Library Practitioners Prepared? Authors Kyle M.L. Jones Indiana University-Indianapolis (IUPUI) Lisa Janicke Hinchliffe University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Source The Journal of Academic Librarianship DOI: 10.1016/j.acalib.2022.102621 Abstract Academic libraries are participating in the collection […]

From the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS): The Institute of Museum and Library services announced today that under a new Executive Order issued by President Biden on Sept. 30, 2022, it will provide funding and administrative support for the re-establishment of the President’s Committee on the Arts and the Humanities (PCAH). The order was part […]

From STAT: In August, the White House’s Office of Science and Technology Policy released a memo directing all federal agencies to form plans to make all federally funded research publications and data publicly available without embargo by the end of 2025. Most people who heard the news likely envisioned making a cup of coffee on Jan. […]

From the Federal Depository Library Program: The U.S. Senate and House of Representatives passed legislation making a 10-year term appointment for the GPO Director, thus aligning the position with the Librarian of Congress and the Architect of the Capitol. The Chair, Rep. Zoe Lofgren, and Ranking Member, Rep. Rodney Davis, of GPO’s oversight committee discussed […]

When the long-awaited COVID-19 vaccines began to roll out in mid-December 2020, their distribution was immediately complicated by a shortage of doses and widespread uncertainty about who would be given priority. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued suggested guidelines for phased allocation. When it was not yet clear who would be next, many library workers, leaders, and associations began advocating for public facing library workers to be vaccinated as soon as feasible.

In the messy middle of the pandemic, library leaders share how things have changed since March 2020, their takeways, and continuing challenges.

Whether librarians are providing services in-person or virtually, reference has changed with the pandemic.

Since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, the number of books on the subject has been increasing exponentially. This introductory list, which will be updated regularly, is meant to help collection development librarians get started on determining which books work best for their collections.

The six-person marketing department at Nashville Public Library is made up of enthusiastic collaborators—willing to listen, iterate, contribute to each other’s strengths, and involve the rest of the library in coming up with great ideas—with a strong leader who inspires creativity and teamwide respect. Los Angeles and Virginia Beach received honorable mentions.

Our Missing Hearts by Celeste Ng leads holds and coverage this week. It is also People's book of the week and Reese Witherspoon's October book club pick. Audiofile announces the October Earphones Award Winners. Six LibraryReads and eight Indie Next picks publish this week. October’s Costco Connection is out featuring It Starts with Us by Colleen Hoover and Mad Honey by Jodi Picoult and Jennifer Finney Boylan. The Hero of This Book by Elizabeth McCracken gets reviewed. Plus, LitHub teases a forthcoming 17th century wilderness novel from Lauren Groff. 

Teachers, librarians, and nurses have some important things in common. They do essential, mission-driven work. They’re mostly women (from 74 percent of teachers to 90 percent of nurses). They’re often underpaid. They’ve faced increased job stressors in the last few years. Many are thinking of leaving their jobs, if not fields—up to 77 percent of Texas teachers in a recent poll. The resulting shortages put more pressure on those who stay.

Abstract: 475 libraries across Switzerland joined together to provide more efficient, consistent and coherent services in a single powerful platform.