Social Networking

Social Networking in the Libraries

Social networks have existed for as long as humans have been on earth. People have needed one another to survive, gain resources, share information, and learn. However, the social networks in web 2.0 and library 2.0 take a different route to achieve the same ends. Modern social networking in libraries utilizes computer software that allows people to form virtual communities and provides the opportunity to interact with one another. According to YALSA,

Social networking sites are those that provide this opportunity to interact. Sites that

allow visitors to send emails, post comments, build web content and/or take part in

live chats are all part of social networking sites (YALSA, 2006).

Social networking tools include more than just the commonly-cited websites, such as MySpace, LiveJournal, and FaceBook. They include blogs, podcasts, instant messaging services, RSS, wikis, and many other public forums where users create profiles and can interact with one another. The power of such resources for a library and its patrons can never be underestimated.

Libraries using social networking software have the capability to create MySpace sites to reach their patrons, particularly teens and other non-traditional library users. Libraries can use blogging software to update patrons about upcoming events, such as author visits, teen game nights, and youth story times. Librarians can create wikis to share research findings, such as genealogical trees, historical data, and other relevant resources. Patrons are able to collaborate with other users worldwide who share the same interests, values, and ideas, as well as being given the opportunity to engage those who don’t. Using these technologies allows patrons to actively engage other people and groups with whom they would likely not have contact with otherwise, which facilitates active learning and critical thinking skills.

While there are many positive outcomes of using and offering social networking technologies, there are also negatives. Legislation has been proposed and implemented to deal with the real and perceived threats of social networks. Two pieces of legislation in particular threaten access to information in libraries. These are CIPA (The Children’s Internet Protection Act) and DOPA (The Deleting Online Predators Act), both of which seek to protect children from online predators by targeting social software that allows children to post personal information and/or interact with adult predators on the internet. These pieces of legislation require strict internet filters on public school and library computers that minors have access to for research and social purposes, which can drastically limit the number of valuable educational tools (Murphy, 2006). It is thought that limiting access to such tools and sites creates a “safer” internet for children (Federal Communications Commission, 2006).

Please visit the following links to learn more and respond to the questions below:

1. http://www.technologyreview.com/InfoTech/17266

2. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/deleting_online_predators_act_of_2006

3. http://wikis.ala.org/iwa/index.php/Main_Page

4. http://www.ala.org/Template.cfm?Section=litoolkit&Template=/ContentManagement/ContentDisplay.cfm&ContentID=50654

Questions:

1. 1. What are some possible positive outcomes for libraries utilizing social networking software/sites and web 2.0 technologies?

2. What are some possible positive and/or negative outcomes of DOPA, CIPA, and other similar initiatives for patrons?

3. 3. What values or ethics could guide one’s support of social networking availability to patrons? What about those supporting the restriction of social networking?

Works Cited

Federal Communications Commission. (2006, January 12). Children's Internet Protection Act. Retrieved February 24, 2008, from http://www.fcc.gov/cgb/consumerfacts/cipa.html

Murphy, B. (2006, July 26). ALA disappointed by House passage of bill that will block key web applications. Retrieved February 23, 2008, from ALA News: http://www.ala.org/Template.cfm?Section=pressreleases&template=/contentmanagement/contentdisplay.cfm&ContentID=133666

YALSA. (2006). Teens & Social Networking in School & Public Libraries: A Toolkit for Librarians & Library Workers. Chicago: American Library Association.

An Introduction to Web 2.0

Web 2.0 makes utilizing the Internet a more participatory experience. Using this technology provides you with opportunities to change content on websites, allowing for greater collaboration and sharing on the web. You may already be familiar with sites that use these technologies, but you may not have made the connection to Web 2.0. Examples include the ability to write a review on Amazon.com, to share a photo on Flickr.com or to bid on an item on eBay.com.

Here are some types of Web 2.0 sites, with descriptions of their features. Also provided are the names of some of the easiest, least overwhelming sites for novices.

Photo Sharing – Sites such as Flickr.com and Photobucket.com allow users to upload pictures, tag (label) them, and use them on message boards and other websites. Flickr also allows users to easily locate, use, and print pictures uploaded by others.

Podcasts – A podcast is a “digital audio program, a multimedia computer file that can be downloaded to a computer, an IPod, or another device, then played or replayed on demand. Updated content and new editions can be downloaded quickly and in some cases, automatically.” (Islam, 5)

Feed Readers/Newsreaders/Aggregators – A feed reader saves you time by “monitoring countless sites and sources and providing near real-time updates to one location.” (Gruber, 2006) In other words, aggregators bring rapidly changing content to the viewer. Information (including news, blogs, newsletters, podcasts, and weather) which is of specific interest to you is sent to a site for easy viewing. Free feed readers are available at Newsgator.com, Google.com and Yahoo.com. Subscribing to feeds is simple. If you visit a blog, for example, and you would like to keep up with the content changes, you can often click on the word “subscribe” or on a small icon. That site’s information is then retrieved and displayed on the feed reader site. (School Library Journal, 2008). You may see the terms RSS and Atom used when describing feed readers. These are two feed formats, both of which are supported by most feed readers.

Start Pages - Using a site such as Netvibes.com allows you to create a page in minutes which contains favorite bookmarks, current email account, feeds, search engines, weather, and many other web features on one page. You can access pages such as this one from any computer.

Collaboration/Word Processing – Writeboard.com and Google Docs (docs.google.com) are examples of online word processors that allow groups of people to view and/or edit documents. Document changes can be seen on RSS feeds.

Social Bookmarking Sites – Popular bookmarking sites like del.icio.us are used to save and organize websites that interest you. You are able to access your chosen sites from any computer. Additionally, you are able to share your bookmarks with others and find and use bookmarks that others have tagged.

Social Networking Sites – The goal of these sites is to bring people together. This can be done through sites that provide professional/business networking (LinkedIn.com) or opportunities to make new friends and keep in touch with old ones (MySpace.com).

Other Sites - Wikis, blogs, video sites (YouTube.com), instant messengers, and interactive maps (Google Maps) are further examples of sites that use Web 2.0 technology.

Important terminology –

AJAX - AJAX allows the content of a website to be automatically updated. The pan and scan feature found on mapping websites, allowing you to scroll to another area without refreshing the page, uses AJAX technology.
Folksonomies - A folksonomy is a tagging system. Each user classifies information as he/she sees fit, sharing the classifications between users. Thus a user can view all public pictures on Flickr.com that have a specific tag assigned to them. (Friedman, 2005)
Mashup –

“A mashup is an application that uses
1) modern Web integration technologies
2) to take content or services from two independent sources
3) to solve a unique or niche problem.” (Howe, 2007)

An example of this includes combining a mapping website with a local directory, allowing viewers to locate a business easily.

Tagging - Using keywords to identify data, to make it easy to locate and share with others.

XML – a language which is designed to transport and store data, XML complements HTML (which is designed to display data). XML allows users to upload content onto the web without using a complicated code. (W3 Schools, 2008)

For more information, please visit the following links.

5-minute video featuring David Berlind, Executive Director of ZDNet, titled What is a Mashup?

Excellent description of a feed reader.

3-minute YouTube.com video titled What is Web 2.0?

Introductory videos (2 to 4 minutes each) in a fun format teach the basics of RSS, wikis, social bookmarking, online photo sharing, and social networking at http://commoncraft.com

1. Does your local library use social networking sites?
   
2. How do you use social bookmarking sites to organize sites important to you? What sites (or types of sites) would you bookmark in a library setting?
3. How could you use feed readers to organize and give patrons access to current events?

Works Cited

(2008). What is RSS? School Library Journal, Retrieved February 20, 2008, from
http://www.schoollibraryjournal.com/learnRSS

Friedman, P.K. (2005, September). Folksonomy. Anthropology News, 46, Retrieved February 26, 2007, from http://www.anthrosource.net/doi/abs/10.1525/an.2005.46.6.38.1

Gruber, F. (2006, March 30). The State of online feed readers. Retrieved February 27, 2008, from TechCrunch Web site: http://www.techcrunch.com/2006/03/30/the-state-of-online-feed-readers/

Howe, T. (2007, September 8). The truth is that everything isn’t a mashup. Retrieved February 27, 2008, from The Thomas Howe Company Web site: http://thethomashowecompany.com/278/the-truth-is-that-everything-isnt-a-mashup

Islam, K. A. (2007). Podcasting 101 for training and development. Pfeiffer essential resources for training and HR professionals. San Francisco:

XML Tutorial. Retrieved February 20, 2008, from W3 Schools Web site: http://www.w3schools.com/xml/xml_whatis.asp

Censorship and how it relates to libraries

An article put together by the American Library Association defines censorship very well. In it, the article says, "Censorship is the suppression of ideas and information that certain persons—individuals, groups or government officials—find objectionable or dangerous." (ALA, 2007) This idea of filtering materials for patrons of a certain library or area definitely has a huge impact on librarians of all areas. This can mean materials and books not being allowed into the country, a librarian not choosing a book for their library, or because the town or area where the library is located would be opposed to the topic or kind of material that is included. (Asheim, 2005) This is an issue that comes up in all types of libraries in different ways.
Banning and challenging books also goes along with censoring. There are many factors that can lead to books not being allowed in a certain area or library. When doing the banned book project I noticed many of the books that were challenged were done so by a town or a small group of people. Therefore that book is allowed in most areas but patrons in that specific area will not be allowed to read that particular material because it is being censored is one way that it can affect librarian’s especially in schools and public libraries.
Sexuality is one of the main factors taken into consideration when going to censor materials. However, it can be very hard to get the court system to determine that a material needs to be illegal, there are many factors that have to be taken into consideration when a court is deciding whether or not to censor it for the country. (ALA, 2007) So this is something that the average librarian has to deal with when ordering new materials for their library or just working a new area.

Discussion Questions

Do librarians censor all the materials they choose or don’t choose for their libraries?

Is it ethical for librarians to censor materials for the patrons of the library or set restrictions on certain things?


How can you as a librarian defend articles that are in your library that could be challenged by the community or patrons?


Works Cited
ALA. (2007). Intellectual Freedom and Censorship. Retrieved February 14, 2008, from American Library Association: http://www.ala.org/ala/oif/basics/intellectual.htm
Asheim, L. (2005). Not Censorship But Selection. Retrieved February 14, 2008, from American Library Association: http://www.ala.org/Template.cfm?Section=basics&Template=/ContentManagement/ContentDisplay.cfm&ContentID=109668

Definition of Ethics

Ethics is moral philosophy. According to the American Heritage Dictionary it is, “the rules or standards governing the conduct of a person or the members of a profession”. Ethics are what guide us to do what we believe to be good or right. It is the theory or belief of what is good or “good living”. Morality is the living embodiment of ethics. There are personal, societal and community ethics to name a few. Ethics can vary by culture or country yet one could argue that there are some basic human ethics. These might include: Honoring basic human dignity and inflicting no harm on others. Ethics includes one’s philosophy of life, thoughts about what type of person we ought to be, how we should treat others, and what we should do and accomplish in life. Ethics necessarily implies personal freedom in that we have the choice to act based on our ethics; to do what we believe to be “right”. There is an assumption that there is a “right” or correct answer or action in a particular situation. Because ethics vary between communities and cultures some believe that there can be no consensus on what is morally correct.

Questions for Discussion
1. What ethical values do you hold? Are they personal, familial or cultural in origin?
2. How do your ethical values relate to how you perform your job and daily interactions with people?
3. How do you find common ground with someone whose ethical values differ from yours?
4. Do you find that ethical values change with age or vary within generations?

Sources
American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language. 3rd ed. (1992). Boston, Houghton Mifflin Company.

American Library Association. (2008). Code of Ethics of the American Library Association. http://www.ala.org/ala/oif/statementspols/codeofethics/codeethics.htm
Adopted June 28, 1997, by the ALA Council; Amended January 22, 2008. Viewed February 13, 2008.

Baggini, J. and Fosl, P. S. (2007). The Ethics Toolkit. Malden, MA, Blackwell Publishing.

Broad, C.D. Ethics. (1985). Dordrecht, Martinus Nijhoff Publishers.
Cahn, S. and Markie, P. (2002). Ethics: History, Theory, and Contemporary Issues. New York, Oxford University Press.

Singer, Peter, ed. (1990). A Companion to Ethics. Oxford, England, Blackwell Publishers.

Issues currently being debated on Intellectual Freedom

Book banning and censorship is a constant issue. Some times the titles change, but censorship is always going to be an ongoing issue as we have seen in our banned book assignment. As well as book burning. Different organization take it upon them self to censor books by burning them to show they do not approve of the book.

Finger scanning of patrons in Library to access the internet is being explored in some libraries. The library would use a finger scanner instead of a library card to use the computers attached to the internet. This way the system could tell the age of the patron and know what kind of filter is needed. Example, adult: it would allow all sites, a minor: would not be access porn, etc. sites. Naperville, Ill public library was to install the finger print scanners in the summer of 2005. Libraries feel it will reduce the children from trading library cards. Critics feel it hinders “privacy and confidentiality issues.”(ALA/Biometrics, 2007) The Children Internet Protection Act (CIPA) requires “ participation library enforce a policy of Internet “safety” on all of its computers with Internet access a technology protection measure (TPM) that protects against access to visual depictions in specified categories.”(Minow, 2004). Libraries that receive certain grants must be in compliance with CIPA if they want to continue to receive funds.

In line with censoring minors the question of should children be allowed to check out Graphic Novels is being debated by parents. Most Libraries state that this kind of material is in the adult section and children rarely go in that area. They also feel that it is the parents’ responsibility to make sure they don’t check out material that they don’t want their children to read.

Confidentiality is being question with surveillance cameras in libraries that librarians say they need it for their security. The right for the government to access the files of libraries has been question also. The USA Patriot act came into affect on Oct. 26, 2001 to give the government power they needed to fight the war on terrism. “The American Library Association (ALA) opposes any use of governmental power to suppress the free and open exchange of knowledge and information or to intimidate individuals exercising free inquiry…ALA considers that sections of the USA PATRIOT ACT are a present danger to the constitutional rights and privacy rights of library users.”(ALA/ Resolution on the Patriot Act, 2007) In several cases the court has order the library to turn over their internet files and check out file to check on an individual of possible terrorist connections.

Questions:

What do you think about filtering a library internet?

Should librarians refuse to check out certain books to minors, such as the graphic novels?

Do you think cameras in libraries and/or having a fingerprint scan, hinder on your privacy?

ALA/ Intellectual Freedom Issues. (2007). Retrieved 2 13, 2008, from http://www.ala.org/ala/oif/ifissues/Default883.htm#links

ALA/ Resolution on the Patriot Act. (2007). Retrieved 2 13, 2008, from http://www.ala.org/Template.cfm?Section=ifresolutions&Template=/ContentManagement/ContentDisplay.cfm&ContentID=11891

ALA/ Torture. (2007). Retrieved 2 13, 2008, from http://www.ala.org/Template.cfm?Section=ifissues&Template=/ContentManagement/ContentDisplay.cfm&ContentID=77697

ALA/Biometrics. (2007, June 14). Retrieved February 13, 2008, from http://www.ala.org/ala/oif/ifissues/biometrics.htm

Minow, M. (2004). First Monday. Retrieved 2 13, 2008, from http://firstmonday.org/issues/issue9_4/minow/#note9

Role of Intellectual Freedom and Ethics in the Library Profession

Librarians are often faced with the unpleasant, challenging, and undesirable task of being asked or required to censor material found in the library. What responsibilities (or lack thereof) do librarians have to protect intellectual freedom? What ethical requirements do librarians experience? In order to take on this task, Megan Schliesman (2008) states librarians “must understand the principles of intellectual freedom and how those principles are applied in the real world.” Therefore, we as librarians have the responsibility to truly consider intellectual freedom and the role it will play in our library.

An interesting point to consider when reflecting on this topic is the impact the library’s community plays in determining the role of intellectual freedom. Certain communities may challenge one topic frequently while other communities may be concerned with a completely different topic. Each community’s concerns can be referred to as the local values. Many librarians are often forced to participate in a “balancing act” between the right to intellectual freedom and “local values” (Miller and Fisher, 2006). As Miller and Fisher (2006) explain, there are laws that protect both intellectual freedom as well as people, such as minors.

Other minds in the field, such as Will Manley, appear to believe librarians should take a stronger stance in promoting intellectual freedom. Manley’s article (2007), “Covering All the Bases,” states that “we [librarians] have an important role to play in providing people the information they needed to offset the irrational biases and stereotypes of the past.” This statement seems to encourage pushing the local values of a community to broaden the community views.

An ethical consideration for librarians to consider is how their personal opinions affect intellectual freedom decisions. It may be easy to agree censoring or banning a book that contradicts your personal beliefs. However, as Schliesman (2008) explains, librarians “must be willing to acknowledge their own biases and fears in decision making, and then move beyond them.” This presents an ethical challenge for librarians to leave their personal feelings out of intellectual freedom debates.

Please visit the American Library Association’s Library Bill of Rights, to view their stance on the role of libraries, intellectual freedom, and ethics.

Discussion questions:

1. Do you agree that librarians need to balance local values and intellectual freedom?

2. Do you agree that librarians have to a duty to expand the views of their community?

3. Do you think it would be difficult to defend a book that you personally disagreed with?

4. Have you (or personally know others that have) struggled with personal beliefs v. intellectual freedom? Would you like to share these experiences?

5. What is a book/topic that would be difficult for you to support if challenged in your library?

References

American Library Association. (1996). Library bill of rights. Retrieved February 13, 2008, from http://www.ala.org/ala/oif/statementspols/statementsif/librarybillrights.htm

Manley, Will. (2007). Covering all the bases [Electronic version]. American Libraries, 38(11), 88.

Miller, Ellen G., & Fisher, Patricia H. (2006). Local values, the First Amendment, and challenges [Electronic version]. Texas Library Journal, 82(4), 152-154.

Schliesman, Megan. (2008). Intellectual freedom [Electronic version]. Language Arts, 85(3), 221-226.

Definition: Intellectual Freedom

The ALA website defines intellectual freedom as:

the right of every individual to both seek and receive information from all points of view without restriction. It provides for free access to all expressions of ideas through which any and all sides of a question cause or movement may be explored. Intellectual freedom encompasses the ability to hold, receive and disseminate ideas (http://www.ala.org/ala/oif/basics/intellectual.htm).

Intellectual freedom is guaranteed by the First Amendment of the U.S. constitution, which is part of the Bill of Rights and was ratified on December 15, 1971. The First Amendment reads:

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and petition the government for a redress of grievances (http://www.ala.org/ala/oif/firstamendment/faresources/resources.htm).

The issue of intellectual freedom is also an international one. On December 10, 1948 b the United Nations General Assembly adopted the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Article 19 states that everyone has the right to form and express their opinions without interference. Furthermore, Article 19 states that everyone is entitled to research and disseminate information “through any media and regardless of frontiers” (http://www.un.org/Overview/rights.html). Nonetheless, the U.S. media regularly reports on the efforts of repressive regimes to stifle intellectual freedom among its citizens.

Discussion questions:

1.After reading the First Amendment and Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights as well as the ALA’s definition of Intellectual Freedom, how would you define this concept?

2.Do you think that the meaning of intellectual freedom is changing due to new technology and the post 9/11 political climate?

3.What role has intellectual freedom played in shaping our national identity and the history of the United States? Do you think that it has contributed to making this country a world power?

References

American Library Association. (2007).First Amendment Resources.
Viewed February 10, 2008 from http://www.ala.org/ala/oif/firstamendment/faresources/resources.

American Library Association. (2007). Intellectual Freedom and Censorship Q&A.
Viewed February 10, 2008 fromhttp://www.ala.org/ala/oif/basics/intellectual.htm.

General Assembly of the United Nations. (2008) Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Adopted December 10, 1948 by the General Assembly of the United Nations. Viewed February 10,2008 fromhttp://www.un.org/Overview/rights.html.

Intellectual Freedom - "What types of ethics exist?"

In dealing with issues of intellectual freedom, we would do well to take a few moments to consider the major types or divisions of ethics and what each looks like; how one conducts one’s self within a given culture – how people live and function together. Certainly, issues of “right and wrong” are addressed, but each ethical school of thought will not only disagree on what is right or wrong, but will even define right and wrong in radically different terms.

Having studied ethics rather extensively in seminary (4 years of full-time study for a M. Div.), what follows is a broad overview of types of ethics. Subdivisions in ethics are numerous (conventional ethical relativism, subjective ethical relativism, moral absolutist deontological ethics, deontological ethics sans moral absolutism, etc.) and would involve detail beyond what this venue is designed to handle. Please note that this is not a presentation of personal ethics, business ethics, medical ethics, ethical standards of organizations (e.g. ALA) and so on, but rather major categories into which such ethics fall.


Ethical relativism holds that how people ought to function together is based on a subjective understanding of right and wrong and “ought-ness,” if you will. Such ethics might be determined by the individual or by the group (family, association such as a business or professional association, even the culture at large). Ethical relativism does not acknowledge an objective standard outside the individual or the group.


Utilitarianism holds that what is of paramount importance is what is in the interest of the most people. The group at large must be considered over the individual; what is good for society is more important than what is good for the individual or minority. The popular phrase “the ends justify the means” is a pure expression of utilitarianism.


Deontological ethics and teleological ethics deal directly with the good or bad of an action itself. Deontological ethics deal with obligation – it is your duty to do ______. Teleological ethics considers an action to be either right or wrong based on the outcome of the act. If lying brings about good, then lying is good.


It is important to consider that personal ethics, as well as group or corporate ethics, will usually cross into more than one of these major categories.


With regard to intellectual freedom:

• Apart from the issue of pornography (which is illegal for minors to view), is it ethical to place filtering software (especially software that cannot be overridden) on computers in libraries – institutions that are committed to making information available to everyone? What category(ies) of ethics do you employ in your answer?


• Should parents have the right to restrict the materials their children access in the library? UNICEF’s Convention on the Rights of the Child states that children have the right to education and the right to information (among other rights). Again, what kinds of ethics are being employed in your answer? How about UNICEF’s Convention on the Rights of the Child?


• In light of the ownership of intellectual property and copyright laws, should librarians intervene when copyrighted materials are being reproduced (photocopied)? If so, on what ethical basis? If not, should the librarian and the library be held liable if authorities bring litigation against them? On what ethical basis do you give your answer?