and more.
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LibrariesALA Reopens Search for New Executive Director
The news of the reopened search comes on the one-year anniversary of Leslie Burger taking the helm as interim executive director, on November 15, 2023, and more than a year after executive director Tracie D. Hall abruptly resigned from her position on October 6, 2023.
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Libraries
Three Candidates to Vie for ALA Presidency
Lindsay Cronk, Andrea Jamison, and Maria McCauley have been announced as the candidates for the 2026-27 presidency of the American Library Association. Ballot mailing for the ALA election will begin on March 10, 2025.
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News
How to Help Rebuild Libraries in Conflict Zones
Alison Tweed, CEO of U.K.–based charity Book Aid International, describes the destruction of libraries in Lebanon, Ukraine, and Iraq and advises on how the book business can help to rebuild them.
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Libraries
EveryLibrary Warns That U.S. Election Results Mean More Uncertainty for Libraries
The last few years have been difficult for libraries and librarians. And following the 2024 presidential election, the future for the profession just got a lot murkier, according to the customary election night wrap-up from nonpartisan library political action committee EveryLibrary.
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Awards & Prizes
Librarians’ Choice: 2025 Carnegie Medal Longlist Announced
A total of 46 books—23 fiction titles and 23 nonfiction titles—have made the longlist for the American Library Association’s 2025 Andrew Carnegie Medals for Excellence in Fiction and Nonfiction, the association’s adult book award. The six-title shortlist will be announced on November 12.
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Libraries
The Week in Libraries: October 4, 2024
Among the week's headlines: Penguin Random Houses's new public policy manager talks about book bans and her new role; a fascinating look at the Internet Archive; and a new survey explores people's attitudes toward libraries.
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Libraries
In Arkansas, Book Banners Dealt Another Legal Setback
A federal judge has ordered the Crawford County Public Library in Arkansas to stop segregating books with LGBTQ themes into special “social sections,” finding that the policy “was motivated in substantial part by a desire to impede users’ access."
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Libraries
The Week in Libraries: September 27, 2024
Among the week's headlines: it was a busy Banned Books Week in court with developments in two major book banning cases; an anti–book banning resolution is reintroduced in Congress; Delaware libraries grapple with a ransomware attack; and the Carnegie Corporation gives $4 million to New York City libraries.
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Libraries
On Appeal, Llano County Seeks Book Ban Ruling That Would Upend Public Libraries
At an appeal hearing this week, lawyers for the rural Texas county told the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals that it should strike down a three-decade-old precedent and hand politicians near total authority over what books can go on—or be banned from—public library shelves.
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Libraries
ALA Finds Book Challenges Are Slowing in 2024
ALA’s Office for Intellectual Freedom tracked 414 challenges to censor library materials in the first eight months of the year, down from 695 during the same period in 2023, with ALA reps suggesting that advocacy efforts, including lawsuits in several states, are beginning to yield positive results.
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Libraries
Penguin Random House Creates New Role to Help Battle Book Bans
Rosalie (Rosie) Stewart, most recently manager of grassroots communications for the ALA's Public Policy and Advocacy Office, will join the publisher as senior manager for public policy, reporting directly to PRH VP Skip Dye, a key move that signals the publisher's intent to expand its battle against book bans beyond the courtroom.
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Libraries
The Week in Libraries: September 20, 2024
Among the week's headlines, ALA releases a new booklist for young readers on the importance of voting; Penguin Random Houses's Banned Wagon embarks on its second-ever tour; and why the Florida attorney general is wading into a closely watched book banning case from Llano County, Texas.
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Libraries
The Week in Libraries: September 13, 2024
Among the week's headlines: PEN America reports a surge in school book bans; amicus briefs are filed in a key freedom to read case from Llano County, Texas; and Book Riot reports on the escalating attacks on academic libraries.
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Libraries
The Week in Libraries: September 6, 2024
Among the week's headlines: Louisiana librarian and freedom to read advocate Amanda Jones releases her memoir; officials in Garland County, Arkansas, are looking to put a library funding cut up for a vote; and the Internet Archive loses its appeal over the scanning and lending of library books.
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Publisher News
Appeals Court Upholds Decision Against Internet Archive’s Book Scanning Program
The decision leaves only the Supreme Court left for the Internet Archive, suggesting the case may finally be winding down after years of contentious legal wrangling.
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Libraries
DPLA, IPG Team Up to Offer Libraries an E-Book Ownership Option
A partnership between the Digital Public Library of America and the Independent Publishers Group is offering an e-book ownership option from a wide range of indie publishers.
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Libraries
The Week in Libraries: August 9, 2024
Among the week's headlines: the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals has weighed in on Iowa's SF 496 with a mixed decision; Utah bans 13 books from all public schools in the state, six of which are by Sarah J. Maas; and Kelly Jensen of 'Book Riot' offers a how-to guide to fighting book bans.
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Content / e-books
OverDrive Forms New Content Group
Company officials said that the group will focus on "developing content discovery channels and evolving access models" to provide "the best possible content experience for institutions across the globe."
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Libraries
The Week in Libraries: August 2, 2024
Among the week's headlines: a new EveryLibrary report explores the threat to libraries posed by the Heritage Foundation's Project 2025; Maggie Tokuda-Hall weighs in on book bans for 'Book Riot'; and a mother and TikToker in Idaho details her experience with the state's new harmful to minors law.
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Libraries
Sam Helmick Named ALA President for 2025-2026
Helmick, who is community and access services coordinator at Iowa City Public Library, steps in after Ray Pun, who won the election for ALA president in March, announced last month that he was stepping down for health reasons.
