After more than a week of polling, explaining, contemplating and equivocating, the American Library Association still hadn't reached a decision by press time early Friday afternoon on the fate of its annual conference. There was some indication, however, that a move to Southern California was becoming more likely.
On Tuesday, the World Health Organization lifted the SARS-related travel ban to Toronto after finding that the city had experienced no new cases in more than a week. That would seem to have made the ALA's decision an easy one, but concerns about attendee and exhibitor pullouts turned the situation on its head. Sources said that some of the largest vendors had pressured the group to postpone or move the show, threatening not to come if it went on in Toronto. The exhibitors were reportedly worried about the health of their employees but, perhaps as important, said sources, they were concerned that the SARS threat could deter attendees from coming and make exhibiting not worth the cost.
On the other hand, the ALA felt the squeeze because if the show doesn't take place in Toronto it could bring an unexpected burden to exhibitors; in the case of one large publisher, a number of authors had been promised an appearance at the show because they live in Toronto and would have to be flown to a new city if the show moved. ALA was also considering canceling the show, but seemed to dismiss that possibility early on.
Despite ALA's early assertions that it was too late to move the convention, sources say that the show last week began to contemplate a variety of new locales, including Philadelphia and Hawaii, before focussing on Southern California. "It's a very difficult decision," ALA head Mitch Freedman noted last week. "There's a downside no matter what you choose." For the latest news, please see publishersweekly.com.
