The name Data Center evokes images of computers and disks, of cubicles with people scanning computer screens, of sudden surges of mechanical typing by printers. It's ironical that…
Abstract
The name Data Center evokes images of computers and disks, of cubicles with people scanning computer screens, of sudden surges of mechanical typing by printers. It's ironical that the words “data center” apply now to electronically provided information.
WILLIAM DAVIES has been appointed City Librarian of Bradford in succession to Mr H Bilton, who is retiring. Bill Davies is presently Deputy City Librarian of Hull, having…
Abstract
WILLIAM DAVIES has been appointed City Librarian of Bradford in succession to Mr H Bilton, who is retiring. Bill Davies is presently Deputy City Librarian of Hull, having previously served in Stockton on Tees, Wellingborough North Riding County and Teesside Public Libraries. He is an ‘old boy’ of the Newcastle School of Librarianship and was President of the AAL in 1971.
Sneha Tripathi and Aditya Tripathi
Ethics is an inherent concept for any profession. The purpose of this paper is to discuss the ethical perspective of librarianship. The focus of the discussion is to identify…
Abstract
Purpose
Ethics is an inherent concept for any profession. The purpose of this paper is to discuss the ethical perspective of librarianship. The focus of the discussion is to identify whether it is ethics or law which should supercede in changing the legal and social environment, with special reference to India.
Design/methodology/approach
The state of a right to privacy in India is elaborated. The discussion is focused around library ethics and user privacy, which is a much less talked about matter in Indian librarianship than in the developed world.
Findings
Professional ethics should be given equal consideration while framing law and policies for non‐profit organizations like libraries. The issue of privacy has been given very little credence in terms of library rules and regulations in India. There is a need to create awareness among the masses on the issue of privacy and it should be considered as an important component while formulating guidelines for library policies.
Practical implications
The role of library associations is considered to be vital in creating awareness among the libraries and information centers. Library associations in India are urged to make similar efforts like American Library Association. Impact of information technology on privacy is explored as one of the emerging research areas.
Originality/value
This paper is the first of its kind to study how the libraries in India are dealing with the issue of privacy and highlight the need for the information professionals to protect their professional ethics.
Details
Keywords
This chapter compares the status of intellectual freedom in libraries “then” (1970s) and “now” (2005). As starting points for comparisons, it uses two Advances in Librarianship…
Abstract
This chapter compares the status of intellectual freedom in libraries “then” (1970s) and “now” (2005). As starting points for comparisons, it uses two Advances in Librarianship chapters, by Edwin Castagna (Castagna, 1971) and David K. Berninghausen (Berninghausen, 1979), respectively. The US Supreme Court, although somewhat ducking the direct question of library censorship in a school library case in 1982, has consistently upheld intellectual freedom, even in the face of an onslaught of federal laws passed by Congress to restrict speech. The high-water mark came in 1997 when the American Library Association joined the American Civil Liberties Union and others to challenge the Communications Decency Act of 1996, which would have prohibited “indecent” speech on the Internet, an undefined term that could have swept away vast quantities of speech. In 2003, however, the Supreme Court ruled against libraries when it held that a narrower law, the Children's Internet Protection Act (CIPA) is constitutional. This law requires libraries and schools that receive specified federal funds and discounts to use “technology protection measures” to block obscenity, child pornography, and material “harmful to minors.” This chapter looks at these and related cases, as well as the library profession's evolving ethical and political stance on intellectual freedom issues.
The article will discuss the particular needs of women prisoners, many of which are replicated in prisons throughout Europe, and are also often undetected and underestimated. The…
Abstract
The article will discuss the particular needs of women prisoners, many of which are replicated in prisons throughout Europe, and are also often undetected and underestimated. The focus will be on the situation for women in Italian prisons, considering the specific health and social care needs they present, how some needs differ to those of male prisoners, and to what extent the organisation of prison health attempts to meet these needs. The key issue identified is that the organisation of prison health deals predominantly with emergency cases and is not able to provide a preventative healthcare service to women in prison. Also, women prisoners suffer a greater impact on their physical and mental well‐being as a result of poor implementation of healthcare services, as well as from the regime of prison itself.