[Libs-Or] Multnomah County Library's Intellectual Freedom Newsletter –October 2024

Mon Nov 4 08:00:00 PST 2024

Greeting Oregon Library Community,

The October edition of Multnomah County Library's IFC Newsletter is now
available (see below and PDF version attached). It is a bit longer to
include the plethora of articles that emerged from Banned Books Week. Also,
you will see several articles on disinformation that are addressing the
current climate as well as the presence of AI in the information landscape.
Access and privacy are discussed in a few of the articles.

Thanks for all you do to support intellectual freedom!

Rights, Responsibilities & Reactions
Intellectual Freedom Newsletter – October 2024

------------------------------

A library in Houston moved an Indigenous history book to the fiction section
<https://www.lonestarlive.com/news/2024/10/houston-area-library-moves-indigenous-history-book-to-fiction-section.html>
(Lonestar Live, 5 min). Since then the recategorization has been
reversed: Texas
library committee under review after relabeling Indigenous history book as
fiction
<https://www.lonestarlive.com/news/2024/10/texas-library-committee-under-review-after-relabeling-indigenous-history-book-as-fiction.html>
(Lonestar Live, 4 min). For background on the decision, see Texas
reclassifies book on abuse of Native Americans as "fiction"
<https://popular.info/p/texas-county-sidelines-librarians> (Popular
Information, 6 min). Also, Freedom to Read advocates denounced the action
<https://pen.org/press-release/decision-in-texas-reclassifying-celebrated-native-book-diminishes-truths-of-american-history/>
as diminishing Indigenous history (PEN, 6 min) and Attacks on people’s
stories are attacks on people
<https://www.forwardtimes.com/editorial/op-ed/attacks-on-people-s-stories-are-attacks-on-people-just-ask-a-librarian/article_8c55eb18-8f17-11ef-b015-a7f0fb8316a9.html>
(Forward Times, 6 min). (censorship)

The American Library Association released preliminary data on 2024 book
challenges <https://www.ala.org/bbooks/book-ban-data> – so far, there is a
decrease in challenges (4 min). BookRiot calls out one of the underlying
reasons for the current wave of censorship: Book challenges are financial
strains on libraries
<https://bookriot.com/book-challenges-are-financial-strains-on-libraries/>
(8 min). Time highlights the impact of censorship: Banning books isn't just
morally wrong. It's also unhealthy
<https://time.com/7094430/book-banning-health-consequences/> (4 min). (
censorship)

More from Banned Book Weeks: Check out New York Public Library’s online
exhibit, which includes a curriculum for educators: Banned: Censorship and
the Freedom to Read
<https://www.nypl.org/events/exhibitions/banned-censorship-freedom-read>.
Related: Why teens across the country are acquiring Brooklyn Public
Library's free digital cards
<https://bookriot.com/why-teens-across-the-country-are-acquiring-brooklyn-public-librarys-free-digital-cards/>
(28 min). Author Margaret Renkl praises those fighting against
censorship: Looking
for a Superhero? Check the Public Library
<https://www.nytimes.com/2024/09/23/opinion/book-bans-librarians.html> (New
York Times, 7 min). From Religion News: The Freedom to Read is an essential
human - and religious - right!
<https://religionnews.com/2024/10/19/the-freedom-to-read-is-an-essential-human-and-religious-right/>
(5 min). (censorship, access)

Ava DuVernay talks about the importance of continuing the fight against
censorship: ‘We Have to Work Together’: Action Beyond Banned Books Week
<https://americanlibrariesmagazine.org/blogs/the-scoop/we-have-to-work-together-action-beyond-banned-books-week/>
(American Libraries, 7 min). Good news in California: California bans
anti-LGBTQ+ book bans in public libraries
<https://www.lgbtqnation.com/2024/10/california-bans-anti-lgbtq-book-bans-in-public-libraries/>
(LGBTQ Nation 5 min). (censorship, diversity)

Silent censorship flies under the radar and comes from patrons and staff: Salem
librarians report patrons trashing, hiding LGBTQ+ books
<https://www.salemreporter.com/2024/09/19/salem-librarians-report-patrons-trashing-hiding-lgbtq-books-in-past-year/>
(Salem Reporter, 5 min) and Removing books often takes debate. But there’s
a quieter way
<https://www.nytimes.com/2024/10/08/books/book-ban-library-weeding.html>
(New York Times, 5 min, also summed up in video
<https://www.nytimes.com/video/books/100000009621142/how-book-bans-happen-under-the-radar.html>).
The chilling effect is real. Now, schools are censoring themselves.
<https://slate.com/life/2024/09/banned-books-week-schools-censorship.html>
(Slate, 8 min). Related, PEN America’s latest report on school
censorship: America’s
Censored Classrooms 2024
<https://pen.org/report/americas-censored-classrooms-2024/>. (censorship)

The Electronic Frontier Foundation, which is part of a lawsuit to protect
prisoners’ rights to access their mail
<https://www.eff.org/cases/abo-comix-et-al-v-county-san-mateo-and-christina-corpus>,
highlights the impact of censorship in prisons: Being in jail shouldn’t
mean having nothing to read
<https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2024/09/prison-banned-books-week-being-jail-shouldnt-mean-having-nothing-read>
(8 min). (access, censorship, privacy)

EveryLibrary Institute recently published a report on the impact of the
Heritage Foundation’s Project 2025 on libraries
<https://www.everylibraryinstitute.org/report_project_2025>. For a summary
see: Project 2025’s dire impact on libraries
<https://www.washingtonblade.com/2024/10/26/opinion-project-2025-libraries/>
(Washington Blade, 6 min). Related, state laws New State Laws Are Fueling a
Surge in Book Bans
<https://www.nytimes.com/2024/09/23/books/book-bans-laws.html> (New York
Times, 3 min). (access, diversity)

Washington Post shares data on public library use: Who uses public
libraries the most? There’s a divide by religion, and politics
<https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2024/10/04/who-uses-libraries/> (8
min). Related, Rampant Magazine reports on the importance of libraries to
communities:  Who Are Our Libraries For?
<https://rampantmag.com/2024/10/who-are-our-libraries-for/> (24 min). (
access)

The Conversation dives into the legal issues with internet access for kids: Is
childproofing the internet constitutional? A tech law expert draws out the
issues
<https://theconversation.com/is-childproofing-the-internet-constitutional-a-tech-law-expert-draws-out-the-issues-240430>
(5 min). Related, How to stop advertisers from tracking your teen across
the internet
<https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2024/09/how-stop-advertisers-tracking-your-teen-across-internet>
(EFF, 8 min). (access, privacy)

The Conversation highlights some of the key motives behind
conspiracy-spreaders and disinformation
<https://theconversation.com/some-online-conspiracy-spreaders-dont-even-believe-the-lies-theyre-spewing-237730>
(7 min). The New York Time reports on the real impact of
disinformation: Bizarre
falsehoods about hurricanes Helene and Milton disrupt recovery efforts
<https://www.nytimes.com/2024/10/10/business/media/hurricane-milton-helene-conspiracy-theories.html>
(6 min). The Washington Post provides an interactive with tips on election
misinformation: Can you tell what’s real or fake?
<https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/interactive/2024/election-misinformation-quiz-ai-fake-real/>
(10 min). For a more in-depth look at the prevalence and underlying issues
with disinformation, see I’m running out of ways to explain how bad this is
<https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2024/10/hurricane-milton-conspiracies-misinformation/680221/>
(Atlantic,10 min). See also WHYY’s tips on countering disinformation: To
combat misinformation, start with connection, not correction
<https://whyy.org/articles/misinformation-rumor-elections-political-statements/>
(8 min). (disinformation)

The Internet Archive has been the target of at least four cyberattacks this
month
<https://mashable.com/article/internet-archive-down-again?test_uuid=01iI2GpryXngy77uIpA3Y4B&test_variant=a>
(Mashable, 3 min), compromising user data and causing major disruptions in
service to those who rely on the archive for information access. This is
another major blow to digital preservation and access after IA lost its
copyright court case against publishers last month
<https://www.wired.com/story/internet-archive-loses-hachette-books-case-appeal/>
(Wired, 8 min). Related, Wired provides a deep dive into IA’s ongoing
battles
<https://www.wired.com/story/internet-archive-memory-wayback-machine-lawsuits/>
(25 min). (access)

The New Yorker explores the meaning and relevance of privacy: What Is
Privacy For?
<https://www.newyorker.com/culture/the-weekend-essay/what-is-privacy-for>
(17 min) –prompted by a new book on privacy: Right to Oblivion by Lowry
Pressly <https://multcolib.bibliocommons.com/v2/record/S152C2474043>. (
privacy)

AI Spotlight
The News Literacy Project offers a few takeaways on AI in light of
information literacy: 6 things to know about AI
<https://newslit.org/tips-tools/6-things-to-know-about-ai/>. Related, this
chatbot pulls people away from conspiracy theories
<https://www.nytimes.com/2024/09/12/health/chatbot-debunk-conspiracy-theories.html>(New
York Times, 5 min). While VOA reports on ongoing issues with AI: 'Garbage
in, garbage out': AI fails to debunk disinformation, study finds
<https://www.voanews.com/a/garbage-in-garbage-out-ai-fails-to-debunk-disinformation-study-finds/7830414.html>
(5 min). (disinformation)

Mashable reports on a Monday Night Football mishap
<https://mashable.com/article/mnf-google-onside-kick-misinformation?test_uuid=01iI2GpryXngy77uIpA3Y4B&test_variant=a>
(8 min) and how misinformation can quickly and pervasively spread with
Google's AI search result summary. (disinformation)

A new report for the Center for Digital Democracy on surveillance of
Connected TV viewers to target them with manipulative AI-driven ad tactics
<https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/streaming-television-industry-conducting-vast-surveillance-of-viewers-targeting-them-with-manipulative-ai-driven-ad-tactics-says-new-report-302267993.html>
(4 min). (privacy)

------------------------------

Additional Resources

ALA Intellectual Freedom Blog: https://www.oif.ala.org A blog dedicated to
intellectual freedom issues, and includes the Intellectual Freedom News
<https://www.oif.ala.org/category/intellectual-freedom-news/> –a weekly
roundup of IF related articles
Oregon Library Association’s Intellectual Freedom Toolkit
<https://libguides.osl.state.or.us/iftoolkit/home> (published February 8,
2022). A range of tools and resources relating to IF challenges and
policies created by the OLA Intellectual Freedom Committee.

Rights, Responsibilities & Reactions is a monthly roundup of Intellectual
Freedom News compiled by the Multnomah County Library Intellectual Freedom
Committee. We welcome suggestions at lib.ifc at multco.us.

*Jennifer Keyser *(she/her)
*Policy Coordinator Librarian*
Monday - Friday
971-429-4699
Multnomah County Library
multcolib.org

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