Blog | Page 231 of 231 | American Libraries Magazine

Philly Dodges “Doomsday”; Other Pennsylvania Libraries in Limbo
By Beverly Goldberg | September 18, 2009
The Download Dilemma

The demise of the compact disc signals an uncertain future for library sound recording collections.
By D.J. Hoek | July 27, 2009
Chicago Crowd a Record

ALA's executive board calls this conference a spectacular success.
By Leonard Kniffel | July 27, 2009
Ohio Budget Deal Includes Less Severe Funding Cut
By Gordon Flagg | July 15, 2009
Arne Duncan on Libraries in Economic Recovery

The U.S. Secretary of Education shares his views on volunteerism, No Child Left Behind, and reading readiness.
By Leonard Kniffel | June 30, 2009
Chow Down in Chi-Town

American Libraries' Annual Conference dining guide.
By Rob Christopher | June 9, 2009
On the Line for the First Amendment

A July 1995 interview with Judith Krug, director of ALA's Office for Intellectual Freedom, who died April 11. The towering champion of free speech and vigorous opponent of censorship shared her views with American Libraries in a conversation with Senior Editor Beverly Goldberg that was published in September 1995.
By Beverly Goldberg | May 27, 2009
Stimulate Your Library

Congress made history with the passage of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA), signed by President Obama February 17, and now libraries have their turn.
By Emily Sheketoff | May 26, 2009
Cuts, Freezes Widespread in Academic Libraries
By Leonard Kniffel | May 13, 2009
OCLC’s Andrew Pace Reveals Plans for Web-Scale Management

OCLC’s executive director for networked library services explains why “Quick Start” represents a sea change in library resource management
April 28, 2009
Why Johnny Can’t Search

Searching is the new reading
by Joseph Janes | January 2, 2007

Latest Library Links

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Ricardo Serrano Denis writes: “New York Public Library (NYPL) has put together a list of the best new comics of 2026 based on librarian input and feedback. It’s a special list as it offers a glimpse into the reading habits, intellectual leanings, and potential fandoms shared among New York’s book ambassadors. As such, it is an infectious selection of comics. Manga and young adult comics have always had a strong presence in NYPL’s best new comics lists, especially in recent years. This year, the selection is more varied, running the gamut of genres.”

The Beat, Oct. 1
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Eamon O’Connor writes: “Calling on public spaces to be the savior for our crisis of social connection can seem like a tall order. Can we really expect library- and park-goers to become fast friends just because they’re sharing the same space? Maybe with time—but the key is understanding that friendship is not the only goal. Indeed, many studies are showing the value in the weak ties, the casual encounters and loose acquaintances in our orbit that keep us connected to community.”

Reimagining the Civic Commons, Oct. 6
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Evie Cordell, Kate Lambaria, and Piper Martin write: “Springshare’s LibGuides platform is a widely used tool for sharing digital content, allowing librarians to curate resources about specific topics. However, at many libraries, the large number of guides and their inconsistent quality pose educational and practical challenges. Librarians at University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign Library developed a systematic, multi-phase process to assess, update, and standardize LibGuides, balancing the importance of maintaining high-quality instructional content with the need for scalable, sustainable, and accessible LibGuides.”

Portal: Libraries and the Academy, vol. 26, no. 4, Oct.
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Chirag Shah writes: “Generative artificial intelligence (AI) has made production close to free. A report, a thread, a paper, a newsletter: one prompt and 30 seconds. So what changed? Everything on the supply side, and nothing at all on the demand side. Whatever generative AI has done to the supply of text, it’s done nothing to the thing that actually limits knowledge, which is a human being paying attention long enough to understand something. We automated the easy half of the loop and left the hard half exactly where it was.”

Information Matters, Sept. 30
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How many Bluesky posts has the Censorship Cases Bot made providing updates on legal cases related to book censorship? What percentage of 2025’s library censorship attempts were initiated by pressure groups, government officials, or decision makers rather than “concerned parents”? Find these statistics and more in a special edition of American Libraries’ By the Numbers.

American Libraries Online, Oct. 7
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“Book bans are pervasive and insidious threats to creative expression and intellectual freedom. Stories are an unparalleled tool for truth, and in the face of fear of misinformation, it is paramount that truth prevails.” Read quotes like this one from Tony Weaver Jr., Banned Books Week honorary cochair and author of the graphic novel Weirdo, on intellectual freedom and book-banning.

American Libraries Online, Oct. 7
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Phil Morehart writes: “This year’s Banned Books Week coincides with ALA’s official 150th anniversary on October 6. To mark the occasion, ALA has released a list of the 150 most challenged books documented from 1990 through 2025. The list spans contemporary titles such as Gender Queer: A Memoir by Maia Kobabe and literary classics such as To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee and Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck.” Also in recognition of ALA’s anniversary, Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson officially proclaimed October 6, 2026, as American Library Association Day in Chicago.

I Love Libraries, Oct. 5; ALA150.org, Oct. 6

View more Latest Library Links

The demise of the compact disc signals an uncertain future for library sound recording collections.

ALA's executive board calls this conference a spectacular success.

The U.S. Secretary of Education shares his views on volunteerism, No Child Left Behind, and reading readiness.

American Libraries' Annual Conference dining guide.

Congress made history with the passage of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA), signed by President Obama February 17, and now libraries have their turn.

OCLC’s executive director for networked library services explains why “Quick Start” represents a sea change in library resource management

Searching is the new reading