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ELCOME to another instalment from Mediawatching Towers, as we look at what has been
making headlines and piquing interest across the library world. First up we have a contribution from the Rev Alan Jesson, who has been in touch with a piece from The Times looking at efforts in Scotland to help families struggling with costs. The report (behind a paywall at https://bit. ly/3ZcVGAS) looks at how “lend and mend” hubs are being trialled in Scottish libraries.
The report quotes SLIC Chief Executive Pamela Tulloch, who says: “It’s great to see our lend and mend hubs take shape in what is an exciting chapter for our libraries.
“And at a time when all of Scotland’s communities are experiencing economic and environmental challenges, the role of public libraries has never been more important.
“The introduction of this network has the potential to create a real impact. Receiving over 40 million visits every year, the Scottish public are familiar with borrowing from libraries, but don´t always have the opportunity to extend this circular thinking to other aspects of their lives, for example how they use household goods and clothing.” Next we have a blast from the past as Alan Bullimore recalls Richard Griffiths’ portrayal of Henry Crabbe in Pie in the Sky. Alan says: “It is now 10 years since the actor Richard Griffiths died, but the detective drama Pie in the Sky (1994- 1997) is still a popular feature on the Freeview Channel, Drama.
“As an ex-law librarian I find the title sequence a hard watch, featuring as it does so many outdated editions of legal textbooks. Dicey & Morris – Conflict of Laws (eighth edition); Smith and Hogan Criminal Law (second edition) and Archbold, 40th edition. Having these on the shelves would have meant immediate expulsion from BIALL.” However, he adds: “Henry Crabbe’s Pie Making in the British Isles has presumably stood the test of time much better, although it probably doesn’t include many vegan options.” We move on to more news around book banning and library protests,
September 2023 Cork City Library.
taking place on both sides of the Atlantic.
NBC News is reporting that library boards in the US are unilaterally pulling public and school library memberships to the American Library Association. These moves are happening without consultation with librarians working in the libraries, and NBC reports that they are being driven by the ALA’s stance on opposing book bans. The report (
https://bit.ly/3r2jZop) states: “In northeastern Wyoming’s Campbell County, a coal-mining area where former President Donald Trump got 87 per cent of the vote in 2020, library board meetings have been packed and often heated for over two years now. “After a local outcry over a drag queen story hour and an unsuccessful attempt to prosecute library officials over books in the library’s children’s section, a library board with several new members appointed by the County Commission withdrew from the ALA last year.”
Campbell County was the first library board to withdraw, but others have followed. The library board went further when library director Terri Lesley raised concerns about a proposal to use weeding as a way of removing books seen as problematic
from library shelves. She was eventually sacked for her stance, but has since gone on to win an award from the ALA over her commitment to intellectual freedom. In another show of support for libraries and intellectual freedom, The Pink News reports that crowds took action to protect a library in Ireland during an Ireland Says No demonstration. Around 300 people arrived at Cork City Library as the demonstration took place on the streets outside, and formed a human circle to protect the library. The library has previously been targeted by conservative groups calling for it to remove LGBTQ+ books from its shelves. The Pink News (
https://bit.ly/4858qxm) goes on to say that previous demonstrations had led to the library being closed to protect users and staff, however on this occasion: “A crowd of counter-protesters formed a human shield around a city centre library in Ireland, enabling it to remain open despite a right-wing rally taking place on the street outside.”
More from the world of media and library in the next issue of Information Professional - keep sending your favourites. IP
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