June American Librarians

[Millard Johnson]

.David Burt quoted Marilyn Gell Mason:

On selection she says, "Nevertheless, there have always been material
that most libraries don't buy.  (Much of what can be found in an adult
bookstore falls into this category.)  When we make judgments we call it
selection.  When we choose to exclude material we call it censorship.
Evidence suggests that the distinction lacks meaning in an electronic
environment."  She then goes on to compare a library installs a
exclusive filter to one which sets up an inclusive list of permitted
sites.  "Which library is providing access to more information?  The one
that selects or the one that censors?  Is it any less valid to 'select
out' material that it is to 'select in'".  Precisely!

If keeping out pornography is the ONLY objective then censoring may
be "precisely" the solution.  But the big problem with censoring is that
pornography is a precise activity only in the mind of the censor.  If
the library is concerned about helping the user, then there are
issues of quality, reliability, accuracy, presentation, etc.  In short, if
the collection goal of the library is something other than: COLLECT
EVERY BIT OF INFORMATION ANYONE EVER THOUGHT TO 
SPEW OUT, WITHOUT REGARD TO ACCURACY, RELIABILITY
OR ANY CRITERIA EXCEPT - NOTHING THAT I CONSIDER
PORNOGRAPHIC then censoring is probably not the precise tool
to employ.