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O, we come to the end of another year and the final Mediawatching of 2021. But fear not, we will return in 2022 for another regular round up of tired clichés, late returns and other odd happenings from the world of libraries.


But first, let us look at the final offerings from this year – and we start with the Library of Congress and a very fast car. Top Gear magazine (https:// bit.ly/3HV3kH2) reports that the world’s largest library has taken delivery of an iconic 1980s Lamborghini Countach LP 400 S. And this is no ordinary Lamborghini (if such a thing exists), it is in fact a movie star – having appeared in 1981’s The Cannonball Run, starring Burt Reynolds, Roger Moore, Farrah Fawcett, Dean Martin, Sammy Davis Junior and Jackie Chan. The car is worth a few hundred thousand dollars at least, so in order to keep costs down the library has opted to install a 3D digital scan in to their growing collection of cars in its National Historic Vehicle Register.


From one starring role to another, and this time we move to the dark underbelly of Shetland, the BBC drama that exposes the crimes on the normally idyllic Scottish Island. The latest episode sees a filing cabinet loaned to the production company from Shetland Library make its first on-screen appearance. Speaking after its appearance on the show, the grey, multi-drawer cabinet denied claims its acting had been wooden, pointing out that it is in fact made of metal. Shetland Library Twitter was keen to give its latest star some extra exposure (https:// bit.ly/30WC5v5).


While extra exposure is welcome in some quarters, the opposite is the case on the other side of the Atlantic with a US Election campaign raising issues over book banning in schools. Michael Gorman forwarded the story from the Washington Post (https:// wapo.st/3FM1vKz). The report states: “A Pulitzer Prize-winning novel from 1987 has suddenly become the hottest topic in the Virginia governor’s race, as Republican Glenn Youngkin charged that Democrat Terry McAuliffe blocked


December 2021


Film star car becomes national treasure.


parents from protecting their children from explicit classroom material, while McAuliffe responded by raising the specter of book-banning. “With only a week to go until Election Day, Youngkin released an ad Monday featuring Fairfax County resident Laura Murphy, who waged a battle against Beloved in schools beginning in 2013 after her son – a high school senior at the time – said it gave him nightmares while reading it for an advanced placement literature class.”


This incident may not be a one off,


as The Guardian reports (https://bit. ly/3ray3ty) that there has been a spike in “organised attempts to ban books in schools”.


American Library Association Director Deborah Caldwell-Stone says it is the worst she has seen in 20 years with the ALA, adding: “Social media is amplifying local challenges and they’re going viral, but we’ve also been observing a number of organisations activating local members to go to school board meetings and challenge books. We’re seeing what appears to be a campaign to remove books, particularly books dealing with LGBTQIA themes and books dealing with racism.”


Finally to a Black Friday deal that is hard to resist – free books for all. The “deal” was in fact a spoof campaign


from New York Public Libraries, which of course offers free books every day of the year – not just Black Friday. PR Week (https://bit.ly/3l9T9o9) highlighted the campaign, which saw digital ads proclaiming that books are “freer than ever”, and also offer zero per cent interest loans, and “free returns” – a nod to NYPL’s recent policy to stop fining users for late returns. It is the fourth year that the library service has run a Black Friday campaign and the ads were shared on social media and sent to the library’s 1.3m subscribers. Readers who clicked through for the deal were taken to a microsite encouraging them to sign up for a library card.


A spokesperson for the library said: “These ads, of course, generate an always-needed chuckle, but they also call attention to the best deal of any season: public libraries, and the worlds of knowledge, adventure, opportunity, and fun that they offer all people every day.


“It’s a funny but important reminder that libraries are here and will always be here for whatever the public needs – good books, expert recommendations, helpful classes, fascinating programs, and, sometimes, a good laugh.” IP


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