Thirty-six ethical codes from national professional associations were studied, the aim to test whether librarians have global shared values or if political and cultural contexts have significantly influenced the codes' content. Gorman's eight core values of stewardship, service, intellectual freedom, rationalism, literacy and learning, equity of…

Librarians have long recognized the importance of privacy to intellectual freedom. As digital technology and its applications advance, however, efforts to protect privacy may become increasingly difficult. With some users behaving in ways that suggest they do not care about privacy and with powerful voices claiming that privacy is dead, librarians…

This paper traces librarianship's notions of intellectual freedom to a widely analyzed concept in law and political science known as the marketplace of ideas. A stewardship orientation in librarianship is described, changes in the profession are examined, emotional factors and democratic values are discussed, and self-actualization is considered.…

This look at changes in young adult literature and librarianship over the past 10 years discusses young adult librarianship in 1978; the development in 1978 of the "Young Adult Perplex" column reviewing adolescent literature; sex education; feminism; intellectual freedom; different perspectives of the column; and the current status of the field.…

Winter 2007 marked an episode of high anxiety in the library science profession, when the latest Newbery winner, "The Higher Power of Lucky," triggered discussion about words and their suitability for young readers. It seems that the entire world now knows that the word "scrotum" appears on the first page of the book. School…

Just about everything that librarians do as professionals carries ethical implications. Matters of intellectual freedom are most commonly recognized as loci for ethics-based decision making, but the totality of individual and collective conduct is in need of practical, normative ethical structure. What is argued for here is a framework founded on…

Previews the agenda for the American Library Association's 2002 Midwinter Meeting. Topics include the incompatibility of Bush administration national security initiatives with traditional rights of intellectual freedom; budget cuts; government funding; new roles for libraries in times of crisis; Internet access and control; and librarians'…

Reviews the social responsibilities traditionally recognized as directly related to librarianship and explores the question of whether librarians should take positions on broader social issues. Arguments on both sides are presented and some of the philosophical and professional concerns that should be addressed are discussed. (20 references) (CLB)

These articles address the core values of librarianship, focusing on democracy and public libraries; equity of access to information, including building collections, circulation policies, interlibrary loan, and intellectual property and licensing; intellectual freedom, including rating systems for various media; and library service in the light of…

Describes activities of the 1991 American Library Association (ALA) Annual Conference. Topics discussed include federal legislation; Israeli censorship and Palestinian library closings in the occupied territories; intellectual freedom; library services to an aging population; cultural diversity; children's rights; video copyright; access services;…

These five reports discuss electronic books; the Internet speed and digital reference; Internet publishing from the perspectives of libraries, publishers, authors, and scholars; a cross-cultural comparison of intellectual freedom in the United States and Canada; dissemination of government information; and the implications of technology for…

A study was conducted at the University of Southern Mississippi School of Library Science to quantitatively determine whether courses adequately addressed program goals and objectives. Results showed that service goals and librarianship were reasonably addressed, but research and management goals were addressed in few courses. The statement of…

Librarian's bookshelf lists books from 1990--covering academic/electronic/public/school/special libraries, administration/personnel, automation, bibliographic instruction, cataloging/classification, CD-ROM, YA services, collection development, copyright, customer service, education for librarianship, electronic libraries, facilities, fund raising,…

This selective bibliography of books for librarians includes titles regarding academic libraries; administration and personnel; bibliographic instruction; cataloging and classification; children's and young adult services; collection development; copyright; customer service; distance education; electronic libraries; fund raising; government…