Public libraries and 21^st century digital equity goals

ABSTRACT

Public libraries have historically positioned themselves as pillars of information and inclusion in society. Free, available to all, with materials in multiple languages and formats, libraries are possibly the most inclusive public institution. However, as more materials migrate to the internet, and as preferences for how people access information and how culture changes, libraries are challenged to also incorporate the internet and new information-seeking behaviours into their operations and philosophy.

To examine libraries’ roles in expanding internet access and digital literacy, we discuss the ways that libraries expanded their repertoire and how they approach remediating local digital divides in a North American context, focusing specifically on results associated with their loaning of hotspot devices. We investigate the decisions and controversies across different digital information strategies, and examine the library’s emerging role in digital divide efforts.

KEYWORDS:

• Digital divide
• library
• digital inclusion
• broadband

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.

Notes

1. Under the subsequent Obama Administration, unsurprisingly, digital inclusion goals were revitalised, and normal marketplace solutions were found lacking in achieving digital inclusion.

2. An online controversy erupted when an article in Forbes magazine suggested that libraries were outmoded because Amazon replaced libraries! Forbes deleted the article (Weissman, 7/23/2018).

3. The third system in the region, Queens Library, loaned devices only for one month and allowed patrons to check them out multiple times.

4. NYPL responses were gathered on paper and online while Brooklyn’s were gathered entirely online. These are response rates only for the post-programme questionnaires, not inclusive of the very final survey completed months after the programme ended.

5. Brooklyn surveyed nearly all of its users when they checked out the hotspot. The sample of 2423 responded to numerous items about library services and using electronic resources.

6. After hotspots were returned at the close of the programme described here, they were re-purposed in a ConnectEd programme by the library and available only to families with children in public school.

7. We do not include Wi-Fi at commercial sites in this category simply because there is an expectation that one purchase something or be exposed to advertising in those locations.

8. The growth in computing power in the 1990s made it economically and technically possible to put large collections online in order to make them more widely available. This sort of internal, organisational pressure and priority doubtless contributed to the libraries’ decisions regarding digital access and services. (See Arms, 2012, for example.)

Additional information

Funding

This research was supported in part by a grant from the Robin Hood Foundation, New York, NY.

Notes on contributors

Sharon Strover

Sharon Strover is the Philip G. Warner Regents Professor in Communication and where she directs the Technology and Information Policy Institute. Her recent research projects examine policy responses to the digital divide, internationally as well as domestically; the economic benefits of broadband, particularly in rural areas; the role of libraries in local information environments; and the use of various digital media devices and platforms. Dr Strover has worked with several international, national, and regional government agencies and nonprofits on communications policy issues and is on the editorial boards of several professional journals.