Intellectual Freedom News 8/24/18
August 24, 2018 – Collated by OIF Staff and News Editors
Intellectual Freedom Highlights
- Dear Banned Author – What would you say to your favorite banned and challenged author? This Banned Books Week (September 23-29), we’re hosting a Dear Banned Author letter-writing campaign, and we hope you’ll join us! Visit the website to find author addresses, programming tools and printable postcards.
- Little Free Library Nonprofit Celebrates Banned Books Week – The American Library Association’s Office for Intellectual Freedom and the Freedom to Read Foundation are joining forces with Little Free Library to “Speak Out for Banned Books” through an exciting giveaway! 80 packages of banned books will be given away to registered Little Free Library stewards with the goal of spreading banned books in communities around the country.
- “Raise the Volume on Banned Books Week Programs” video – OIF Assistant Director Kristin Pekoll discusses easy and creative ways to celebrate Banned Books Week.
Censorship
- Why is the Lafayette library having drag queen story time? | The Daily Advertiser (LA)
- Pastors to protest drag queen event at library | Lagniappe Weekly (AL)
- Emanuel, AG Madigan rip EPA proposal to ‘censor’ scientific research | Chicago Tonight
- Guest opinion: Why excluding LGBTQ exhibits doesn’t reflect Utah library values | Desert News
- Parents to still see mature content flagged in Conejo Valley high schools books | Ventura County Star (CA)
- Utah library workers take leadership to task over LGBTQ display, buttons | Library Journal
Privacy
- Let’s retire the phrase ‘Privacy Policy’ | New York Times; “People assume it means their information will be kept private. Nothing could be further from the truth.”
- Most Americans continue to have privacy and security concerns, NTIA survey finds | National Telecommunications and Information Administration
- Schools are using AI to track what students write on their computers | Quartz
- Schools Are Mining Students’ Social Media Posts for Signs of Trouble | Wired
- Despite California privacy law, marketers are still scheming to snatch your data | Los Angeles Times
- Man sues over Google’s “Location History” fiasco, case could affect millions | Ars Technica
- California employers must get applicant OK for background check | Bloomberg
- EFF & privacy coalition oppose efforts to undo new California data privacy law | Electronic Frontier Foundation
- Thousands Of Stores Will Soon Use Facial Recognition, And They Won’t Need Your Consent | Buzzfeed
- Florida law requiring schools inquire about students’ mental health raises privacy concerns | Naples Daily News (FL)
- States are leading the way on data privacy | The Hill
- More states appoint chief privacy officers to protect people’s data | GCN
- Tech Companies Can Search User Content, Vermont High Court Rules | Bloomberg Law
See this week’s additional privacy news and updates on the Choose Privacy Everyday blog.
Net Neutrality and Broadband Access
- Brett Kavanaugh chose corporations over the public in a major net neutrality fight | ACLU
- Mozilla, Others: FCC Net Neutrality Reg Rollback Broke Law | Multichannel News
- Net neutrality in the courts: Two cases, two courts; The one you have been following, and the one you may have forgotten about | Benton Foundation
- 22 states ask court to restore net neutrality | The Verge
- Fire department joins net neutrality suit after Verizon cuts data during wildfire | Huffington Post
- Verizon says throttling firefighters wasn’t about net neutrality — was it? | The Verge
- Verizon’s Throttling of Fire Fighters Could Go Unpunished Because the FCC Repealed the Open Internet Order | Electronic Frontier Foundation
- In Arkansas, ‘digital redlining’ could leave thousands without health care | CityLab
Access
- Congressional think tank catches flak over public access plans | Library Journal
- YA: To label or not to label? | Knowledge Quest
- What’s a library without books? Go to some schools, and that’s what you will find. | Washington Post
- A Dystopian Twist for Library E-Books | Publishers Weekly; “Why Tor’s decision to embargo new e-book releases in libraries is a wake-up call for librarians.”
- No more late fines: Kitsap Regional Library calls them a barrier to borrowing | Kitsap Sun (WA)
Internet Filters
- Filtering: What is it good for? Activities for Banned Websites Awareness Day | School Library Journal
Free Press, Social Media, and Fake News
- Trump’s war on ‘fake news’ could actually make the mainstream media stronger | Brookings
- Russian hackers target conservative groups in widening cyberattacks | Wall Street Journal
- Free speech in a networked world | Inside Higher Ed
- Trump slams social-media companies for ‘censorship’ of the Right | Wall Street Journal
- Twitter fact-checking won’t free us from our baseless convictions | Wired
- Inside the research lab teaching Facebook about its trolls | Wired
Academic Freedom & Campus Speech
- UT lawyers say professors don’t have academic freedom | TribTalk (TX)
- White Professor Accused of Antiwhite Racism | Inside Higher Ed
First Amendment and Free Speech
- I convinced the courts that Nazis have a right to free speech decades ago. I’d do it again today. | Opinion | Philadelphia Inquirer
- Pa. Supreme Court Says Rapper’s Music Crosses Line Of Free Speech, Used To Intimidate Cops | KDKA CBS Pittsburgh
- Harsh new anti-protest laws restrict freedom of speech, advocates say | Washington Post
- Amazon removes book that reproduced 3D-printed gun blueprints | CNet
- Free speech groups protest presidential intimidation of Simon & Schuster | CBLDF
- Can Bennan make a First Amendment case? To us, yes | Freedom Forum Institute
Around the Web
- Advocating Before the Election | American Libraries
- Appalachian Trailblazer: Ali Schilpp, SLJ’s 2018 School Librarian of the Year | School Library Journal
- Drag Queen Story Hour Brings Fun—And Continued Protests | School Library Journal
- Fundamentalist Christian school ban six year-old with dreadlocks | Independent
- Banned books on the run | NPR
- Why it matters that teens are reading less | The Conversation
- Back to School: School library safety and security checklist | Knowledge Quest
- Romance writers survey reveals long way to go on inclusion | Library Journal
International Issues
- Egypt president ratifies law imposing internet controls | ABC News
- Europe is preparing another crackdown on Big Tech | CNN; “Europe is preparing legislation designed to rid social media platforms of terrorist content.”
- Hungary to stop financing gender studies courses: PM aide | Reuters
- PTI government lifts political censorship on PTV, Radio Pakistan | The Express Tribune
- Finnish court issues precedent “right to be forgotten” decision for Google to remove data | YLE
ALA News
- New iteration: Creating a Culture of Usability in Your Library eCourse
- “Veterans: They served us–here’s how to serve them” Upcoming webinar
- Volunteer to serve on ALA, Council, and joint committees for 2019 – 2021
- Teens can now vote for the 2018 Teens’ Top Ten
- Free virtual event with MARCH graphic novel creators offered as part of ALA’s Great Stories Club
- I Love My Librarian! 2018 Award nominations now open
- Still Accepting Applications for the Emerging Leaders Program – Deadline August 31
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