Spotted something for Mediawatching? Email us at:
mediawatching@cilip.org.uk
F
IRST on the list for this month’s Mediawatching is news from the Evening Standard’s Flora Gill – who tells a tale about her boyfriend and a trip to the library. Sent in by Gerry White, from the V&A’s National Art Library, who admits that he couldn’t decide whether the article was a joke or not, adding “I think not, probably…” We’ll let you decide after reading what Flora has to say. The story centres on her boyfriend’s “awkward encounter” at the local library where, after getting his books stamped out he “stood there waiting until it became creepy and the librarian asked him to leave”. The boyfriend’s explanation for this was that he was “waiting to pay”. It turns out he did not know that borrowing books from libraries is free, but now that he does he has turned into an advocate. Flora says: “He is convinced that fewer libraries would be closing if only more people knew this.” Read the full explosive piece at
https://bit.ly/2wRjoJD. And a little tip from Mediawatching – Libraries please stop hiding the fact that your book- lending services are free.
Speaking of secrets, who can forget the secret messages aimed at China President Xi Jingping in the top-selling game Devotion? Of course you do… This time last year Devotion was a top- selling game in China until eagle-eyed gamers discovered the following hidden message: “Winnie the Pooh Xi Jinping moron” – apparently, he looks somewhat like the loveable, simple-minded bear. The game from Taiwanese developer Red Candle Games was promptly banned from the popular Steam gaming platform which boasts some 30 million users in China, but the surrounding furore didn’t do sales any harm.
So, what does this have to do
with Mediawatching (clue – it has something to do with a library)? Yes, that’s right, a copy of the game has now been added to Harvard-Yenching
Getting stuffed.
Photo: cc- by-2.0
www.flickr.com/istolethetv
Library’s collection, according to this report from Abacus Media (https://bit. ly/3acJ8ic).
“Libraries can get stuffed” might sound like a mantra from the austerity playbook, but not in Wapakoneta, Ohio. Auglaize County Libraries service is running a stuffed animal workshop, which sounds like a rather macabre activity – especially when you find out it is aimed at children. However, on closer inspection it turns out these are not real animals, but instead it is a session to give children the chance to create their own cuddly toys.
Speaking of young people, we head to Northampton where the local paper reports on a scheme to help school pupils attend their end of term proms. The Northampton Chronicle and Echo website (
https://bit.ly/32IYJUc) tells the tale of Vicky Foster who has set up a Prom Library, and quickly established herself as the town’s very own Fairy Godmother.
Vicky responded to calls on a local Facebook page asking for a volunteer to help coordinate a project that helps young people who cannot afford their own prom dress or suit. The free service hosts regular fittings – dubbed the Prom Library – for young people and offers a choice of 400 gowns and 50 suits. All the stock has been donated and has now outgrown Vicky’s spare bedroom.
She said: “It’s not just about girls March 2020
and boys being able to afford it, it’s about recycling stuff. One quarter of them have never been worn.” Many of you may have missed a little news story that has been doing the rounds recently, so Mediawatching is here to shed a little light on the under-reported phenomenon that is coronavirus. Ok, it is a hugely significant event that is impacting lives, the economy and causing, if not quite panic yet, then widespread concern. So, it is good to know that libraries are doing their bit to fight the disease. According to Time magazine
(
https://bit.ly/2wUYglI) the latest version of coronavirus (COVID-19) is the third outbreak in 20 years to affect humans. Time points out that these viruses will always make the jump from species (they spend most of their time in a variety of animals), and so it should not come as a surprise to us. With that in mind Dr David Ho, director of the Aaron Diamond AIDS Research Center and professor of medicine at Columbia University, is overseeing the creation of a library of potential coronavirus drug candidates. The rationale is that viruses share some basic characteristics, so any drugs that work on one could be tweaked to provide protection from similar types. Dr Ho believes the new library will give scientists a head start when the next outbreak occurs. IP
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