| February 2007 |
LCA Makes Statements at WIPO meeting in Geneva
The Library Copyright Alliance, of which SLA is a member, released two statements regarding current the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) meeting of Provisional Committee on the Development Agenda. The 20 February 2007 statement addresses four points that relate directly to how WIPO should refine and implement the proposals under consideration for facilitating a development agenda. The 21 February 2007 statement speaks specifically about electronic information for libraries and widespread access to the information, and addresses specific sections of various proposals. WIPO also gathered in January to further discuss Broadcast treaty. One of the concerns is that the treaty is not limited to signal theft. Instead, it creates a set of broad and unwieldy intellectual property rights in the recording and use of fixed transmissions, which are likely to restrict the public's access to information in the public domain. Read More.
SLA Submits Official Comments on EPA Library Closures
SLA provided a letter and commentary to Committee Chair Senator Barbara Boxer (D- CA) on the U.S. Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works hearing on 6 February 2007 regarding the closure of EPA Libraries. Senator Boxer referred to SLA three times during the hearing and SLA's comments were entered into the official Record. Read Letter.
In other EPA library related news, the Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER) states that the new world of electronic libraries at the EPA is turning into a horrendous situation. This sentiment can be found in the complaints of librarians released by PEER. The EPA has almost. one third of its library network closed, and many researchers are frustrated by being forced to rely on large, cumbersome, and incomplete digital inventories. Read article and click here to write a letter to your Congressional representative from SLA's Legislative site.
Digital MLK Documents Available
A Web site is now open to the public with authentic U.S. Civil Rights historical publications, including the digitization of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. documents. The U.S. Government Printing Office (GPO) teamed up with the United States Commission on Civil Rights and the Thurgood Marshall Law Library at the University of Maryland School of Law, to provide the American public a website of authentic Civil Rights historical publications. A mission of GPO is to improve service to the public and assure permanent access to digital collections. Read More.
Join in Sunshine Week activities!
Sunshine Week 2007 is quickly approaching! Join us this year on 12 March 2007 for a webcast discussion called "Closed Doors; Open Democracies?". Ira Flatow of NPR's Talk Of The Nation: Science Friday will moderate two panels of distinguished speakers who will discuss government suppression of scientific information and the importance of access to information. The program will end with ideas for action. Civic organizations, libraries, universities and other groups around the country are invited to participate in our second dialogue on open government and secrecy by hosting or co-sponsoring programs. To learn more about becoming a host site or co-sponsor or to find out if there will be a site near you, visit our website: www.openthegovernment.org. Learn more about Sunshine Week on the official Sunshine Week website.
National Library Legislative Day
SLA, in collaboration with ALA, will participate in National Library Legislative Day 1-2 May 2007. Information professionals are invited to Washington, D.C. to participate in the two-day event that will focus on advocacy and issue training sessions, interact with Capitol Hill insiders and visit Congressional offices to support legislation that backs libraries. Read More.
Orphan Works Still Don't Have a Home
The U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco dismissed a suit brought by Internet Archive founders Brewster Kahle and Richard Prelinger that challenged the constitutionality of the current copyright laws. The suit questions if the current copyright system infringes on First Amendment by stopping orphan works-works still technically under copyright but without a clear copyright owner-from entering the public domains. Read Article.
GAO Reveals Results of FOIA Study
On 14 February 2007 the Government Accountability Office (GAO) was asked to reveal their results of its study on FOIA processing and agencies' improvement plans. The draft of the report on the study is still going around the GAO and is still subject to changes. For the study, GAO reviewed the statistics of FOIA developing at 25 major agencies as reflected in annual reports, as well as the extent to which improvement plans contain the elements emphasized by the Executive Order. Read More, Press Release.
Google to Digitize Princeton's Library
Princeton University Library and Google have agreed on a six-year contract to make the full text of about one million books from the library available online through Google Book Search. This partnership has been in the making for 18 months. Google started the digitization project in 2004. Princeton is the 12th library to open its collection up to Google. Read Full Story and Related Article.
Open Access to Scientific Research Under Fire
According to news@nature the battle over public access to scientific literature goes as far back to the late 1990s when Nobel Prize winner Harold Varmus began plans for PubMed Central-a repository for all research resulting from National Institutes of Health funding-and, a few years later, launched the Public Library of Science. These easily accessible journals and repositories have struck fear into the hearts of traditional publishers, who have enlisted the "pit bull" of public relations to fight back. Read More.
Saving the History in Brittle Books
The Library of Congress has been awarded a $2 million grant to digitize thousands of works in the public domain, in a project focusing on at-risk "brittle books" and U.S. history volumes, the library announced. Awarded by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, the grant will enable the world's largest library to scan and display volumes, including foldouts; develop a page-turner display technology; and begin a pilot program to record metadata such as tables of contents, chapters, sections and indexes. Read Article.
Future Cuts Could Hamper Services at British Libraries
Supporters of libraries in Britain urged the Treasury to look at cuts carefully. They also warn that the consequence of the cuts could be felt for years. Each day writers, academics and researchers join those who have crossed the world to access the fruits of every publication produced in the UK and Ireland, from the humblest tome to the Magna Carta. Read More.
Why Libraries Are Still Needed
Some people have predicted that the digital age would cause libraries to disappear permanently end the centuries-old era of libraries. One librarian even predicted the institution's downfall. As the relevance comes into question, they face a growing crisis at a time they are perhaps needed the most. Read More.
If you have any questions or comments about Public Policy Connections, we would like your feedback. Please share your comments with dnewcomb@sla.org.
Feedback form
