Author Archive: John W. Berry

Merritt Fund Aids a Colleague in Distress

By John W. Berry | March 21, 2012

As director of Hooper (Nebr.) Public Library, Karla Shafer worked to transform the institution into a vital place in the community for six and a half years. Those efforts ended abruptly in 2010, however, when controversy erupted over Shafer’s teaching of English classes to immigrants in a nearby town on her days off. She resigned … Continue reading Merritt Fund Aids a Colleague in Distress →

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Megan Bennett writes: “From the iconic to the incendiary, political messages like these have emblazoned buttons and pins since the start of US elections. Since 2012, Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government in Cambridge, Massachusetts, has been archiving political buttons. The collection now spans thousands of items over a century’s worth of campaigns and causes. The collection has approximately 4,800 buttons and pins and 200 stickers. Most fit into one of three categories: campaigns (local and national), sociopolitical movements, and community organizations like unions.”

American Libraries column, Nov./Dec.
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Cindy Hohl writes: “Recognizing all of humanity in libraries requires a thoughtful approach and a humble spirit. I believe that we, as information professionals, have been called to this work because of our shared values. Every day, library workers provide a vital public function. We are entrusted to serve our communities, and we know that the best way to serve the public good is to welcome everyone into libraries to access accurate information.”

American Libraries column, Nov./Dec.
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Anne Ford writes: “For Susan Brown, December 17, 2004, was a perfectly normal day—until she saw the elevator doors open. Brown, director of Transylvania University’s J. Douglas Gay Jr./Frances Carrick Thomas Library in Lexington, Kentucky, was walking past the staff elevator on the library’s main level when the doors parted and she reflexively glanced inside. Her gaze locked on the great red books held by two young men inside. On the 20th anniversary of what became known as the Transy book heist, American Libraries looks back at one of the most brazen and puzzling thefts ever to take place in an academic library.

American Libraries feature, Nov./Dec.
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Chase Hunter writes: “Chabot College Library and Learning Center in Hayward, California, held a ceremonial opening last week, but students have already gone so often that it’s quickly become a campus cornerstone. More than 35,000 Chabot College students have visited the new library and learning center—the tallest building on campus—this semester, already surpassing last year’s total. The new building’s geometric clean lines and splashes of orange—the school’s color—over a chrome exterior is attracting students in a way that Chabot College hasn’t experienced since the COVID-19 pandemic.”

The Mercury News (San Jose, California), Oct. 28
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Michelle Ehrhardt writes: “Like the Metaverse and NFTs before it, it feels near impossible to follow tech news right now without hearing about Artificial Intelligence (AI). I understand it can get annoying: The tech is still in development, and everyone’s still figuring out the ethics of generating AI Art, or how to make it not suck. It’s tempting to write AI off entirely. There are a few key use cases I’ve found where AI shines better than pretty much any other alternative. As an AI skeptic, here’s where I think AI is most useful.”

Lifehacker, Oct. 28
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Katherine Klosek writes: “The Librarian of Congress—based on recommendations by the register of copyrights—issued an expansion to the 2021 Digital Millennium Copyright Act regulation that permits researchers to circumvent technological protection measures to conduct text and data mining research. The updated regulation clarifies that academic researchers can securely access research collections of literary works or motion pictures hosted by other institutions of higher education for purposes of collaboration, or to facilitate their own independent research projects.”

Association of Research Libraries News, Oct. 28
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Michele Gile and Matthew Rodriguez write: “A group of Huntington Beach (Calif.) residents known as ‘Protect HB’ said they’ve gathered enough valid signatures to try repealing a new ordinance that could impact which books are put on public library shelves. More than 15,000 people have signed a petition that’s headed to the city clerk. If valid, voters will decide whether the city council majority’s community parent-garden review board [which has relocated books on puberty and potty training to the adult section] will exist.”

KCAL-TV (Los Angeles), Oct. 28

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