In order to ensure a proper democracy, void of restraint to all information that is relevant to public knowledge, understanding and learning, National Information Policy is a vital component of the institution of libraries and the profession of librarians. The access to information remains one of the cornerstones of any democratic society. The choice of the powers that be to ensure the transfer of knowledge to citizens is the mainstay of progression and ultimately freedom. This is where the importance of information policy lies: Not what information is allowed access but the fact that access is allowed to those who wish to utilize it.
To define exactly what National information policy is, Donald M. Lamberton said, “National information policy can be viewed as embracing efforts to put into practice the basic notion that the social and economic system will function more efficiently if improved information-flows to the decision making centers can be ensured” (Lumberton, 1974).
Agencies such as the National Commission of Libraries and Information Sciences help to maintain, shape and protect our national information policy. In 2008, the agency reported on how information has grown and evolved since the commission’s inception in 1970. The commission reported:
“During the ensuing 38 years that NCLIS has been advising the Congress and the President on policy issues, the world of information has been transformed from one where information is fixed in a particular geographic location (a physical library) to one that is global and known as the world wide web; from one that was paper-based to digital-based information and research accessible via a variety of electronic devices; from one that relied upon the collections of a particular institution to one where libraries throw open their collections on the Internet; from one that ‘relied’ on unreliable room-size computers, to one where multiple books are carried on a flash drive the size of a child’s finger.”
The importance and relevance of national information policy to librarians is obvious. Librarians act as the gatekeepers to knowledge and information. Our group has chosen key points to share, expand, and facilitate discussion in several areas pertaining to National Information Policy. Please post, reply, and add to areas that spark your interest.
Charles Webb and Group 1
Charles Webb and Group 1
References:
Lamberton, D. (1974). National Information Policy. Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, 412, 145-151.
U.S. National Commission on Libraries and Information Science. (2008). Meeting the information needs of the American people: past actions and future initiatives; a report based on research sponsored by the U.S. National Commission on Libraries and Information Science and conducted by Nancy Davenport and Judith Russell on behalf of Information International Associates, Inc.
From Lamberton’s article which you have referenced I was particularly influenced by this quote “Information is a resource, and control over resources permits the exercise of power and the securing of profit” (150).This statement is very poignant because this makes it clear how easy it is to have complete control over people and a country if you control information. As Librarians we are the gatekeepers of information. Media cannot be trusted to do their job because there are too many pressures to be biased for many reasons and money if the largest motivator to rewrite the facts. But Librarians can be viewed as altruistic in their quest to keep our national information open and accessible to all. But there is one large caveat and that is ethics because there will be situations where national security trumps freedom if the information threatens the security of people. .
ReplyDeleteLamberton, D. (1974). National Information Policy. Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, 150
Agreed. You really hit the nail on the head with the need of librarians to be altruistic. In regards to national security, of course there needs to be some levels of censorship, but there should always be readily available access to areas that are not a threat to the interests of the nation or its citizens.
ReplyDeleteI think it is interesting how it is the common view that information should not be censored unless it is a "national threat". Yet no one cares to define exactly what this means. Since this definition is so broad, I find it easy to imagine many government officials stretching certain instances to keep them censored. Also, who is the gatekeeper of this information? I mean, who gets to decide if the American public knows a certain piece of information about Watergate or terrorism? In general, I agree with both of you are saying and I don't by any means believe all information should be available to the public. I just wonder who gets to decide.
ReplyDeleteby Stephanie Pung
I've often wondered the same thing, Stephanie, when it come to a number of different things. Who gets to decide what should and should not be censored, what constitutes a national threat? Information has often been censored by governments and government agencies, but information is also censored within business and on how far up you go, within families, between individuals, etc. What people have a right to know, and when, and why, and how is an ongoing battle that often brings in views on ethics and the well used opposite stance of "what they don't know won't hurt them." But the question of who gets to do the censoring, if it is done, in libraries has always been an intriguing question for me, giving the ethics we have been so diligently studying throughout this semester.
ReplyDelete