This year's Budgets and Funding Survey showed mixed results for fiscal trends in 2024, from robust forward motion to defunding—with more uncertainty ahead.

Libraries remained mostly strong at the ballot in 2024, but a decline in construction initiatives and tightening budgets speak to the need for increasingly strategic advocacy.

Scott Summers, assistant director of the Media and Education Technology Resource Center (METRC) at North Carolina State University, was named a 2024 Library Journal Mover & Shaker for his work developing a program to help new teachers understand the growing problem of book censorship in school libraries, and how to work with librarians against it. We recently spoke with Summers about why he developed the program and what it teaches.

We cannot be caught flat-footed when library funding is called into question. Doing the work of capturing stories today will help ensure we’re prepared to deal with threats that we may face tomorrow.

From the International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA): Libraries’ ethical principles are arguably one of the things that makes us unique in the information environment. The results of our survey into IFLA’s own Code of Ethics underlines continued commitment to the themes, but also an awareness of evolving responsibilities. IFLA’s Code of Ethics, agreed and […]

From Federal News Network: The largest source of federal funding for libraries and museums is putting all its employees on paid administrative leave, as the agency prepares for major cuts to its operations. The Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) put all of its approximately 75-employee workforce on paid administrative leave Monday, according to […]

From Federal News Network: The largest source of federal funding for libraries and museums is putting all its employees on paid administrative leave, as the agency prepares for major cuts to its operations. The Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) put all of its approximately 75-employee workforce on paid administrative leave Monday, according to […]

From EveryLibrary Institute Immediately following President Trump’s March 14, 2025, Executive Order directing the Institute of Museum and Library Services to “reduce the performance of [its] statutory functions and associated personnel to the minimum presence and function required by law”, the EveryLibrary Institute issued a Brief that outlined and discussed the statutory obligations and discretionary […]

It’s March Madness time! So, check your brackets, grab a beverage and snacks, root for your favorite teams, and join Beth & Mike as they share and challenge each other’s perceptions and predictions with their library & information science perspectives on the whole phenomenon.

Find out what's it like to look at the world from an information perspective, to put on your"information colored glasses!

From the Libraries Lead Podcast - February 2025, AI Watch Segment. Dave Lankes explains and demonstrates DeepSeek - the Chinese-based AI system. Go "under the hood" on DeepSeek and see how it performed better than any other current AI on Beth's query about integration in Alabama schools.

Looking to improve engagement and provide historical context in her Literature 155 course last fall, Professor Alisa Allkins of Harold Washington College used Gale Literature Resource Center to introduce her students to diverse primary sources connected to the book Passing by Nella Larsen. And she discovered a powerful strategy to counter AI-generated work. 

The vital role libraries play in their communities has been well documented, yet many libraries are overlooked, and certainly underfunded, for their significant involvement in disaster preparedness and recovery. Each new disaster brings focus to the urgency around recognizing libraries as key climate resiliency partners. To that end, academics, practitioners, educators, and other leaders have created a body of work to help share stories that raise awareness.

Capturing and preserving information has long been part of the library mission. As the world grapples with the wide range of threats climate change presents to the environment, ecosystems, and society, we can make a difference by keeping people informed.

ALA releases a statement after IMLS staff are placed on administrative leave. Rabbit Moon by Jennifer Haigh is April’s B&N book club pick. The Sirens by Emilia Hart is GMA’s pick. Niko Pfund has been named director of Yale University Press. Atria Books has acquires Matthew Aldrich’s debut novel, The Natural Order, for publication in fall 2026, in a preemptive deal. Interviews arrive with Elaine Sciolino, Colum McCann, Liz Moore, Natalie Keller Reinert, Lawrence Wright, Vicky Nguyen, and Jennifer Haigh. Plus, the best books publishing in April.