Public space, public discourse, and public libraries
The traditional mission of the public library—supporting the self-education of the citizenry in order that they may become fully participating members in a democratic society—has been devalued of late in favour of popularizing the library to attract more users. This shift has led to an emphasis on...
| Main Authors: | , |
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| Format: | Journal Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
2021
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| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://hdl.handle.net/10356/152479 |
| _version_ | 1811693849631784960 |
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| author | Alstad, Colleen Curry, Ann |
| author_facet | Alstad, Colleen Curry, Ann |
| author_sort | Alstad, Colleen |
| collection | NTU |
| description | The traditional mission of the public library—supporting the self-education of the citizenry in order that they may become fully participating members in a democratic society—has been devalued of late
in favour of popularizing the library to attract more users. This shift has led to an emphasis on entertainment and marketing, and an abandonment of what many feel is the true purpose of a library. Loss of democratic tradition has simultaneously occurred on another front: civic space which allows for
public assembly and discourse has disappeared or been downgraded into places for leisure and recreation rather than politics, with a concomitant decline in the quality of public discourse as citizens increasingly depend on profit-driven mass media for their “opinions.” This paper contends that the
public library is an ideal physical and psychological space for public discourse. By supporting public discourse, the public library can begin to reinvigorate both the quality of public discourse and its traditional commitment to democratic ideals. |
| first_indexed | 2024-10-01T06:58:13Z |
| format | Journal Article |
| id | ntu-10356/152479 |
| institution | Nanyang Technological University |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-10-01T06:58:13Z |
| publishDate | 2021 |
| record_format | dspace |
| spelling | ntu-10356/1524792021-08-25T20:10:23Z Public space, public discourse, and public libraries Alstad, Colleen Curry, Ann Library and information science The traditional mission of the public library—supporting the self-education of the citizenry in order that they may become fully participating members in a democratic society—has been devalued of late in favour of popularizing the library to attract more users. This shift has led to an emphasis on entertainment and marketing, and an abandonment of what many feel is the true purpose of a library. Loss of democratic tradition has simultaneously occurred on another front: civic space which allows for public assembly and discourse has disappeared or been downgraded into places for leisure and recreation rather than politics, with a concomitant decline in the quality of public discourse as citizens increasingly depend on profit-driven mass media for their “opinions.” This paper contends that the public library is an ideal physical and psychological space for public discourse. By supporting public discourse, the public library can begin to reinvigorate both the quality of public discourse and its traditional commitment to democratic ideals. Published version 2021-08-20T07:55:40Z 2021-08-20T07:55:40Z 2003 Journal Article Alstad, C. & Curry, A. (2003). Public space, public discourse, and public libraries. Library and Information Science Research E-Journal, 13(1), 1-19. https://dx.doi.org/10.32655/LIBRES.2003.1.3 1058-6768 https://hdl.handle.net/10356/152479 10.32655/LIBRES.2003.1.3 1 13 1 19 en Library and Information Science Research E-Journal © 2003 Colleen Alstad and Ann Curry. All rights reserved. application/pdf |
| spellingShingle | Library and information science Alstad, Colleen Curry, Ann Public space, public discourse, and public libraries |
| title | Public space, public discourse, and public libraries |
| title_full | Public space, public discourse, and public libraries |
| title_fullStr | Public space, public discourse, and public libraries |
| title_full_unstemmed | Public space, public discourse, and public libraries |
| title_short | Public space, public discourse, and public libraries |
| title_sort | public space public discourse and public libraries |
| topic | Library and information science |
| url | https://hdl.handle.net/10356/152479 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT alstadcolleen publicspacepublicdiscourseandpubliclibraries AT curryann publicspacepublicdiscourseandpubliclibraries |