Paul Jaeger is an associate professor in the College of Information Studies at the University of Maryland. From his campus, situated just 13 km from Washington, DC, he has a bird’s-eye view of political processes in the US. The College of Information Studies was ranked by US News & World Report in 2013 as one of the top information schools in the country (#10). It has not been without its trials, however, having been threatened with closure in 1991. No doubt this experience has provided the authors with plenty of grist for the mill.
The book has eight chapters examining, from a US perspective: The notion of public libraries as a public good; The evolution of policies affecting public libraries; The prevailing governance and economic ideologies; Changes in public libraries and communities; Engagement and valuation of the public good; Demonstrating library value; Advocating for support and The public library in the local political process. There are over 20 pages of references, an index and plenty of figures and tables showing sources of funding, numbers of public access workstations, full-time equivalent staff and internet connection statistics.
Jaeger argues that the ‘complex position of public libraries within policy and politics in the United States … has been badly neglected by library scholarship and insufficiently considered in library missions and advocacy efforts’ (p. xi). The author’s goal is to ‘explain the complexity of current circumstances and offer strategies for effectively creating a better future for public libraries’.
There are, of course, critical differences between the funding models of American and Australian libraries. In the United States, local government provides at least three-quarters of public library funding (p. 45). A lack of national goals and standards in the United States leads to a disparity in the funding of and services provided by libraries. The funding model leaves them heavily beholden to the whims of local politics.
Yet, there is enough cultural similarity between the countries for the book to remain useful to Australian readers. Both nations have witnessed increasing austerity measures, the move of government services and employment opportunities online, and increasing pressure on library staff to support learners in navigating the digital world. Both nations feel an increasing pressure to use economic terminology when trying to demonstrate value, to articulate our value more clearly (by demonstration rather than just by assertion) and to support our arguments with data. Weather crises, such as Hurricane Katrina, have given libraries opportunities to facilitate emergency responses for their communities, but they have failed to harness those opportunities to argue for greater support in policy-making and funding. Maintaining an apolitical or neutral stance does not serve libraries’ interests and, more importantly, it does not serve those of their communities. Jaeger reminds readers that whilst 91% of the public believed libraries were important to their communities, ‘only 22% were familiar with most or all of their services’. Plenty of food for thought in this book.
Moreton Bay Region Library Service
© 2015, Alexandra Daw
http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00049670.2015.1100280