Public library innovations during the COVID-19 pandemic

Abstract

This study investigates public library innovations during COVID-19. Many public libraries quickly adapted to the pandemic environment, changing and improving their operations and services to meet the new challenges and user demands. We collected 2 datasets to understand public libraries’ innovations: 751 tweets from the 12 largest public libraries in the U.S. and 72 articles from 3 major professional magazines. These datasets were analyzed to identify innovative services provided between 2020 and 2021. The Twitter data illustrated quick adoption of innovative library services, publicized to user communities, and the magazine articles provided detailed accounts of innovations both user services and internal operations within libraries. The findings of content analysis from both datasets highlight that public libraries quickly changed their service delivery modes and implemented diverse innovative services. These efforts included informing users about the disease, combating racism, bridging the digital divide, supporting health and technology literacy, and assisting with unemployment and career development. Libraries served as community centers during difficult times, focusing on outreach efforts during lockdowns and providing crucial support to vulnerable populations.