Neutrality in public libraries: How are we defining one of our core values?

Abstract

In recent years, library professionals have been struggling with the idea of neutrality, debating whether it is even possible to achieve and, if so, whether it is desirable. This study examined public librarians’ definitions of “neutrality” and asked questions about how this “neutrality” affects their work in libraries. A total of 540 US library workers from 40 different states responded. The most commonly held definition was “being objective in providing information.” Although definitions varied somewhat, there was a high level of agreement with what constitutes neutrality across different scenarios. There were also indications of conflict between personal beliefs and professional values.

Keywords

Ethics intellectual freedom neutrality public libraries values

Get full access to this article

View all access options for this article.

References

American Library Association (2008) Code of ethics of the American Library Association. Available at: http://www.ala.org/advocacy/sites/ala.org.advocacy/files/content/proethics/codeofethics/Code%20of%20Ethics%20of%20the%20American%20Library%20Association.pdf (accessed 14 November 2019).

American Library Association (2019a) Core values of librarianship. Available at: http://www.ala.org/advocacy/intfreedom/corevalues

American Library Association (2019b) Library Bill of Rights. Available at: http://www.ala.org/advocacy/intfreedom/librarybill (accessed 14 November 2019).

Anon (2018) Are libraries neutral? American Libraries 49(6): 32–39.

Ballew

Marlon

Leiserowitz

(2019) Explore climate change in the American mind. In: Yale Program on Climate Change Communication. Available at: https://climatecommunication.yale.edu/visualizations-data/americans-climate-views/ (accessed 14 November 2019).

Berninghausen

(1993) Social responsibility vs the Library Bill of Rights. Library Journal 118(15): S1–S3. Available at: http://www2.hawaii.edu/~donnab/lis610/berninghausen_wedgeworth_1993.pdf (accessed 14 November 2019).

Bourg

(2018) Debating y/our humanity, or are libraries neutral? In: Feral Librarian. Available at: https://chrisbourg.wordpress.com/2018/02/11/debating-y-our-humanity-or-are-libraries-neutral/ (accessed 20 November 2019).

Chen

Marceau

(2015) High value lies, ugly truths, and the first amendment. Vanderbilt Law Review 68(6): 1435–1507.

Dowd

(1989) I want to find out how to freebase cocaine or yet another unobtrusive test of reference performance. Reference Librarian 25–26: 483–493.

10.

Drabinski

(2018) Are libraries neutral? In: Emily Drabinski. Available at: http://www.emilydrabinski.com/are-libraries-neutral/ (accessed 20 November 2019).

11.

Ferretti

(2018) Neutrality is hostility: The impact of (false) neutrality in academic librarianship. In: Medium. Available at: https://medium.com/librarieswehere/neutrality-is-hostility-the-impact-of-false-neutrality-in-academic-librarianship-c0755879fb09 (accessed 20 November 2019).

12.

Harkovitch

Hirst

Loomis

(2003) Intellectual freedom in belief and in practice. Public Libraries 42(6): 367–374.

13.

Hauptman

(1976) Professionalism or culpability? Wilson Library Bulletin 50: 626–627.

14.

Hauptman

(1996) Professional responsibility reconsidered. RQ 35(3): 327.

15.

Kessler

Pozen

(2018) The search for an egalitarian first amendment. Columbia Law Review 118(7): 1953–2010.

16.

Knowles

(2018) Can libraries be neutral? Should they strive to be neutral? Em Claire Knowles. Available at: http://slis.simmons.edu/blogs/emclaireknowles-publications/2018/03/26/can-libraries-be-neutral-should-they-strive-to-be-neutral/

17.

Lewis

(2008) Questioning Library Neutrality: Essays from Progressive Librarian. Duluth, MN: Library Juice Press.

18.

Litwin

(2006) Library Juice Concentrate. Duluth, MN: Library Juice Press.

19.

Magi

Garner

(2015) Intellectual Freedom Manual. 9th ed. Chicago: American Library Association.

20.

Moody

(2004) Censorship by Queensland public librarians: Philosophy and practice. Australasian Public Libraries and Information Services 17(4): 168–186.

21.

O’Brien

(2017) Neutrality in the library? Don’t give me that bullsh*t. In: Book Riot. Available at: https://bookriot.com/2017/10/02/neutrality-in-the-library-is-bullshit/ (accessed 20 November 2019).

22.

Oltmann

(2016a) “For all the people”: Public library directors interpret intellectual freedom. Library Quarterly 86(3): 290–312.

23.

Oltmann

(2016b) Intellectual freedom and freedom of speech: Three theoretical perspectives. Library Quarterly 86(2): 153–171.

24.

Oltmann

(2016c) Public librarians’ views on collection development and censorship, collection management. Collection Management 41(1): 23–44.

25.

Oltmann

(2019) Important factors in Midwestern public librarians’ views on intellectual freedom and collection development: Part 1. Library Quarterly 89(1): 2–16.

26.

Sparanese

(2008) Activist librarianship: Heritage or heresy? In: Lewis

(ed.) Questioning Library Neutrality. Sacramento, CA: Library Juice Press, 67–82.

27.

Swan

(1989) Untruth or consequences. In: Swan

Peattie

(eds) The Freedom to Lie: A Debate about Democracy. Jefferson, NC: McFarland, 1–14.

28.

United Nations (1948) Universal declaration of human rights. Available at https://www.un.org/en/universal-declaration-human-rights/

29.

Wenzler

(2019) Neutrality and its discontents: An essay on the ethics of librarianship. Libraries and the Academy 19(1): 55–78.

30.

Wright

(2011) Lying and freedom of speech. Utah Law Review 2011(3): 1131–1160.

Supplementary Material

Please find the following supplemental material available below.

For Open Access articles published under a Creative Commons License, all supplemental material carries the same license as the article it is associated with.

For non-Open Access articles published, all supplemental material carries a non-exclusive license, and permission requests for re-use of supplemental material or any part of supplemental material shall be sent directly to the copyright owner as specified in the copyright notice associated with the article.

0.00 MB

0.26 MB