Opening Session speaker Sally Yates addresses attendees at the Public Library Association Conference in Philadelphia on March 21, 2018.

Objective Truth Will Save Democracy

March 22, 2018

Yates, former deputy attorney general in the US Department of Justice (DOJ) under the Obama administration and former acting attorney general, is perhaps best known for refusing to defend President Trump’s ban on travel from six majority-Muslim countries and her testimony before the Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime and Terrorism about Russian interference in the 2016 … Continue reading Objective Truth Will Save Democracy


Meet the 2018 ALA Policy Corps

January 29, 2018

The Policy Corps team will meet at the Midwinter Meeting & Exhibits in Denver in February, attend a workshop about political activism and the legislative process in March, and attend ALA’s National Library Legislative Day in May. Meet the first members of Policy Corps, a dozen people with diverse backgrounds and experiences who are united … Continue reading Meet the 2018 ALA Policy Corps


ALA President Jim Neal

Tying Up the Lion

January 2, 2018

I suggest we begin by engaging with other library associations, including the Special Libraries Association, Urban Libraries Council, Society of American Archivists, Medical Library Association, Association of Research Libraries, Association for Rural and Small Libraries, Association for Library and Information Science Education, American Association of Law Librarians, Association for Information Science and Technology, Chief Officers … Continue reading Tying Up the Lion



Keith Michael Fiels

In D.C., It’s All about Our Values

March 1, 2017

As an Association, we advocate for a wide range of federal legislation and policy issues, from intellectual freedom and privacy to access to government information to preservation to copyright. We also advocate for funding for library programs, including the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS), Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA), the E-Rate program, … Continue reading In D.C., It’s All about Our Values


At the ALA National Policy Convening, Alan S. Inouye (left) moderates a panel on "Future Directions for the Library of Congress," featuring Robert Darnton, Carl H. Pforzheimer University Professor and university librarian emeritus of Harvard University; Sascha Meinrath, Palmer Chair in Telecommunications at Penn State University; and Katie Oyama, senior policy counsel of Google.

ALA’s National Policy Convening

April 19, 2016

The National Policy Convening brought together experts from across the beltway policy ecosystem to address some of the most pressing policy issues facing the library community. Programming consisted of three sessions: “Youth Engagement with Technology,” “Advancing Economic Opportunities in Communities,” and “Future Directions for the Library of Congress.” Youth engagement with technology Sen. Angus King … Continue reading ALA’s National Policy Convening


US Capitol, Washington DC

A Policy Revolution for Digital Content

June 23, 2015

The poor and deteriorating state of library ebook lending in 2011 catalyzed this initiative. Waiting for publishers to take different actions would have likely worsened the conditions for libraries. A proactive policy stance must become the library community’s mainstream way of thinking and operating. This is true for ebooks and large publishers, but also more … Continue reading A Policy Revolution for Digital Content