By Michael Meyers Special to NYDailyNews.com
Saturday, August 22nd 2009, 12:51 PM
By placing a racist illustrated book, "Tin Tin Au Congo," behind locked doors, and making it available only upon request and appointment, the Brooklyn Public Library is sending the wrong message about how to deal with controversial works. Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/opinions/2009/08/22/2009-08-22_free_tin_tin.html#ixzz0P7XhIK5d
24 August 2009
20 August 2009
New Book Censorship Map Reveals National Problem
http://www.oif.ala.org/oif/?p=528
Have you ever wondered where challenges to books in the United States actually occur? A new book censorship map featured on the BannedBooksWeek.org site illustrates that censorship efforts take place all across the country. The Google map displays more than 120 book challenges—from Maine to Florida and from Long Island, New York, to San Francisco, California—that have occurred since the beginning of 2007. These challenges represent a small portion of those recorded, and have been culled from cases documented by the Kids’ Right to Read Project, which is sponsored by the American Booksellers Foundation for Free Expression and the National Coalition Against Censorship, and the American Library Association’s “Books Challenged or Banned in 2007-2008″ (pdf) list, by Robert P. Doyle.
Have you ever wondered where challenges to books in the United States actually occur? A new book censorship map featured on the BannedBooksWeek.org site illustrates that censorship efforts take place all across the country. The Google map displays more than 120 book challenges—from Maine to Florida and from Long Island, New York, to San Francisco, California—that have occurred since the beginning of 2007. These challenges represent a small portion of those recorded, and have been culled from cases documented by the Kids’ Right to Read Project, which is sponsored by the American Booksellers Foundation for Free Expression and the National Coalition Against Censorship, and the American Library Association’s “Books Challenged or Banned in 2007-2008″ (pdf) list, by Robert P. Doyle.
19 August 2009
One library’s alternative to book banning
By Marjorie Kehe 08.19.09
Christian Science Monitor: http://features.csmonitor.com/books/2009/08/19/one-librarys-alternative-to-book-banning/
When a book offends, what’s a library to do? Keep it on the shelves – and risk the wrath and upset of some patrons? Or remove it – and raise serious questions about censorship and intellectual freedom?According to the New York Times, the Brooklyn Public Library is trying to navigate a type of middle path as it deals with the controversial “Tintin au Congo” by Belgian comics writer Hergé. The Tintin books are a – mostly – beloved series about the adventures of young reporter Tintin and his dog Snowy. Tintin and Snowy are only likely to become more popular in America as they become the stars of a Steven Spielberg film set for release in 2011.
But the 79-year-old “Tintin au Congo” depicts Africans in a fashion that many readers find offensive and a Brooklyn library patron registered a formal complaint. So in an effort to keep the book off the shelves without making it entirely inaccessible, the library has moved it to a back room where it is held under lock and key and can be seen only by appointment.
It’s an unusual move – and it marks the first time the library has taken such action, despite the numerous controversial titles among its collection. (The Times notes that Hitler’s “Mein Kampf” can be found on its shelves, no appointment needed.)
To become too responsive to public discomfort can put a library in very tight straits. (The Times mentions one library that banned children’s classic “Eloise in Paris” after a parent became upset because the children in the story visit a museum with a nude statue.)
And yet the public library is just that – an institution that serves the public. “You do walk a fine line, making sure your materials are accessible, while being respectful of community standards,’’ Alice Knapp, a former president of the Connecticut Library Association, told the Times.
Christian Science Monitor: http://features.csmonitor.com/books/2009/08/19/one-librarys-alternative-to-book-banning/
When a book offends, what’s a library to do? Keep it on the shelves – and risk the wrath and upset of some patrons? Or remove it – and raise serious questions about censorship and intellectual freedom?According to the New York Times, the Brooklyn Public Library is trying to navigate a type of middle path as it deals with the controversial “Tintin au Congo” by Belgian comics writer Hergé. The Tintin books are a – mostly – beloved series about the adventures of young reporter Tintin and his dog Snowy. Tintin and Snowy are only likely to become more popular in America as they become the stars of a Steven Spielberg film set for release in 2011.
But the 79-year-old “Tintin au Congo” depicts Africans in a fashion that many readers find offensive and a Brooklyn library patron registered a formal complaint. So in an effort to keep the book off the shelves without making it entirely inaccessible, the library has moved it to a back room where it is held under lock and key and can be seen only by appointment.
It’s an unusual move – and it marks the first time the library has taken such action, despite the numerous controversial titles among its collection. (The Times notes that Hitler’s “Mein Kampf” can be found on its shelves, no appointment needed.)
To become too responsive to public discomfort can put a library in very tight straits. (The Times mentions one library that banned children’s classic “Eloise in Paris” after a parent became upset because the children in the story visit a museum with a nude statue.)
And yet the public library is just that – an institution that serves the public. “You do walk a fine line, making sure your materials are accessible, while being respectful of community standards,’’ Alice Knapp, a former president of the Connecticut Library Association, told the Times.
18 August 2009
Library Board refuses to censor book from teen section
original link: http://www.effinghamdailynews.com/local/local_story_230112621.html
Donna Riley-Gordon
Effingham Daily News
Effingham Helen Matthes Library Board was united in its stance against censorship Monday when it unanimously agreed to deny a request to remove a book from the teen section.Board members were adamant against censoring what books the public had access to, indicating it was up to parents and other patrons to preview materials prior to reading to decide if the book met individual tastes or value systems.Amy and Brad Hibdon and their five children all use the library, but the Hibdon’s became concerned about a particular book being offered in the teen section of the library after they read it because their 15-year-old daughter had checked out the book and seemed upset by the content.The book, “Living Dead Girl,” written by Elizabeth Scott, is about a 15-year-old’s perspective of living with her captor after being forcibly kidnapped and imprisoned at the age of 10. The book has received several accolades from book critics.The Hibdons formally requested the book be removed from the library or at least the teen section because of the graphic content of the book and the unsatisfactory ending. The main character is murdered at the end of the book.
Donna Riley-Gordon
Effingham Daily News
Effingham Helen Matthes Library Board was united in its stance against censorship Monday when it unanimously agreed to deny a request to remove a book from the teen section.Board members were adamant against censoring what books the public had access to, indicating it was up to parents and other patrons to preview materials prior to reading to decide if the book met individual tastes or value systems.Amy and Brad Hibdon and their five children all use the library, but the Hibdon’s became concerned about a particular book being offered in the teen section of the library after they read it because their 15-year-old daughter had checked out the book and seemed upset by the content.The book, “Living Dead Girl,” written by Elizabeth Scott, is about a 15-year-old’s perspective of living with her captor after being forcibly kidnapped and imprisoned at the age of 10. The book has received several accolades from book critics.The Hibdons formally requested the book be removed from the library or at least the teen section because of the graphic content of the book and the unsatisfactory ending. The main character is murdered at the end of the book.
14 August 2009
Move to remove book won't protect students
The following editorial contains a word that many people may find offensive
One complaint and a Brampton high school principal folded like a cheap tent and removed one of the 20th century's finest books from the Grade 10 curriculum.
One complaint and St. Edmund Campion Secondary School students can no longer study Harper Lee's classic To Kill A Mockingbird in the classroom.
They can still read the book, which is available in the school's library and in local bookstores. One complaint hasn't banned it there, at least not yet.
But it's ridiculous that this complaint from a parent will deprive students from studying a novel which won the Pulitzer prize for literature in 1961.
This principal certainly had options. He could have stood by the book, told the parent of its merits, and said it would be taught.
The offended parent also had options. His or her teenager could have asked to read another book in place of To Kill A Mockingbird.
At least then the other 25 or 30 students in the class would not have been deprived of the experience of discussing and writing assignments about Lee's classic.
Not to mention learning about the fictional lives of Atticus Finch, his children Scout and Jem, Boo Radley, Tom Robinson and the Ewell family.
http://www.thebarrieexaminer.com/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=1699172
One complaint and a Brampton high school principal folded like a cheap tent and removed one of the 20th century's finest books from the Grade 10 curriculum.
One complaint and St. Edmund Campion Secondary School students can no longer study Harper Lee's classic To Kill A Mockingbird in the classroom.
They can still read the book, which is available in the school's library and in local bookstores. One complaint hasn't banned it there, at least not yet.
But it's ridiculous that this complaint from a parent will deprive students from studying a novel which won the Pulitzer prize for literature in 1961.
This principal certainly had options. He could have stood by the book, told the parent of its merits, and said it would be taught.
The offended parent also had options. His or her teenager could have asked to read another book in place of To Kill A Mockingbird.
At least then the other 25 or 30 students in the class would not have been deprived of the experience of discussing and writing assignments about Lee's classic.
Not to mention learning about the fictional lives of Atticus Finch, his children Scout and Jem, Boo Radley, Tom Robinson and the Ewell family.
http://www.thebarrieexaminer.com/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=1699172
05 August 2009
Web site tracks world online censorship reports
Web site tracks world online censorship reports
by JEANNIE NUSS, Associated Press Writer - Tue Aug 4, 2009 1:50PM EDT
BOSTON - When Shanghai blogger Isaac Mao tried to watch a YouTube clip of Chinese police beating Tibetans, all he got was an error message.
Mao thought the error — just after the one-year anniversary of a crackdown on Tibetan protesters in China — was too suspicious to be coincidental, so he reported it on a new Harvard-based Web site that tracks online censorship.
Meanwhile, more than 100 other people in China did the same thing. The spike in reports on Herdict.org in March pointed to government interference rather than a run-of-the-mill technical glitch, even before Google Inc. confirmed China was blocking its YouTube video-sharing site.
Full story: http://tech.yahoo.com/news/ap/20090804/ap_on_hi_te/us_tec_online_censorship_site
by JEANNIE NUSS, Associated Press Writer - Tue Aug 4, 2009 1:50PM EDT
BOSTON - When Shanghai blogger Isaac Mao tried to watch a YouTube clip of Chinese police beating Tibetans, all he got was an error message.
Mao thought the error — just after the one-year anniversary of a crackdown on Tibetan protesters in China — was too suspicious to be coincidental, so he reported it on a new Harvard-based Web site that tracks online censorship.
Meanwhile, more than 100 other people in China did the same thing. The spike in reports on Herdict.org in March pointed to government interference rather than a run-of-the-mill technical glitch, even before Google Inc. confirmed China was blocking its YouTube video-sharing site.
Full story: http://tech.yahoo.com/news/ap/20090804/ap_on_hi_te/us_tec_online_censorship_site
04 August 2009
Interpretations of the Library Bill of Rights Update
http://www.oif.ala.org/oif/?p=508
In preparation of the 8th Edition of the Intellectual Freedom Manual, the Intellectual Freedom Committee revised several Interpretations of the Library Bill of Rights, which were adopted as amended by the ALA Council. The Committee also proposed three new interpretations to the Library Bill of Rights: “Importance of Education to Intellectual Freedom,” “Minors and Internet Interactivity,” and “Services to Persons with Disabilities.” “Services to Persons with Disabilities” was adopted by ALA Council during the 2009 Midwinter Meeting in Denver, CO. “Importance of Education to Intellectual Freedom” and “Minors and Internet Interactivity” were adopted by the ALA Council during the 2009 ALA Annual Conference in Chicago, IL.
All the revised and new Interpretations will be available in the 8th Edition of the Intellectual Freedom Manual. Publication of the Manual is scheduled to coincide with the 2010 ALA Annual Conference in Washington, DC. They are also available on the ALA site, Interpretations of the Library Bill of Rights.
In preparation of the 8th Edition of the Intellectual Freedom Manual, the Intellectual Freedom Committee revised several Interpretations of the Library Bill of Rights, which were adopted as amended by the ALA Council. The Committee also proposed three new interpretations to the Library Bill of Rights: “Importance of Education to Intellectual Freedom,” “Minors and Internet Interactivity,” and “Services to Persons with Disabilities.” “Services to Persons with Disabilities” was adopted by ALA Council during the 2009 Midwinter Meeting in Denver, CO. “Importance of Education to Intellectual Freedom” and “Minors and Internet Interactivity” were adopted by the ALA Council during the 2009 ALA Annual Conference in Chicago, IL.
All the revised and new Interpretations will be available in the 8th Edition of the Intellectual Freedom Manual. Publication of the Manual is scheduled to coincide with the 2010 ALA Annual Conference in Washington, DC. They are also available on the ALA site, Interpretations of the Library Bill of Rights.
03 August 2009
Reps. Markey and Eshoo Introduce Internet Freedom Preservation Act
Would amend Communications Act to mandate net neutrality
By John Eggerton -- Broadcasting & Cable, 7/31/2009 5:17:23 PM EDT
Reps. Ed Markey (D-Mass.) and Ann Eshoo (D-Calif.) have given the industry and their colleagues something to ponder over the August recess: network neutrality.The pair Friday introduced the Internet Freedom Preservation Act of 2009, according to a draft of the bill supplied by Public Knowledge, which called it a bold first step that was bound to be a conversation starter.
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/326163-Reps_Markey_and_Eshoo_Introduce_Internet_Freedom_Preservation_Act.php
By John Eggerton -- Broadcasting & Cable, 7/31/2009 5:17:23 PM EDT
Reps. Ed Markey (D-Mass.) and Ann Eshoo (D-Calif.) have given the industry and their colleagues something to ponder over the August recess: network neutrality.The pair Friday introduced the Internet Freedom Preservation Act of 2009, according to a draft of the bill supplied by Public Knowledge, which called it a bold first step that was bound to be a conversation starter.
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/326163-Reps_Markey_and_Eshoo_Introduce_Internet_Freedom_Preservation_Act.php
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