Libraries and newspapers are natural allies for intellectual freedom and accurate information, librarians tell editors

Leaders from the Lexington Public Library spoke about intellectual freedom at the
International Society of Weekly Newspaper Editors conference. (Photo by Heather Chapman)

Public schools in the U.S. saw 1,586 book bans from July 2021 to March of this year, and 41% of those were tied to some sort of official directive, according to a recent report by literary and free-expression group PEN America. And though libraries have seen book challenges and bans throughout history, such efforts have spiked dramatically in the past year.

That's one reason libraries and newspapers should support each other, since they are natural allies in the quest to protect and advance intellectual freedom, said a panel of leaders from the Lexington Public Library on Friday. The panel was part of the International Society of Weekly Newspaper Editors' annual conference, hosted by the Institute for Rural Journalism and Community Issues (publisher of The Rural Blog) at the University of Kentucky.

"Diversity of viewpoints, civic engagement -- those values are appropriate for both sides of the aisle," said Heather Dieffenbach, the library's executive director. She said newspapers aren't obligated to support disputed books, but can correct misinformation often at the heart of such disputes, and help facilitate communication among locals. They can also help readers understand how libraries choose materials to add to their collections.

The misinformation can also come from people oppose book bans, said Alan Wartes of the Gunnison Country Times in western Colorado. He said when a local woman wanted Gender Queer, a frequent target of objections around the nation, taken out of the juvenile collection, defenders of the book said "This person wants to ban books." Wartes noted in a column that the woman followed procedure and went to the county commission only after the library didn't respond for two months.

Those who bring challenges often accuse libraries of being biased against conservative values, but librarians are bound by a code of ethics that calls on them to represent diverse viewpoints and ensure that they're bringing in factually accurate materials, said Tonya Head, deputy director of the Lexington library. Chief of Staff AnnaMarie Cornett, the daughter and sister of weekly newspaper publishers, said she is building a toolkit to help library patrons better understand these principles.

Patrons, papers and concerned citizens can do much to help advance intellectual freedom, said Cornett: They can inform others, and join library boards and/or the PTA. "We can be visible and vocal supporters when censorship comes for us; when it comes for libraries, for newspapers, for schools," said Cornett. "This is hard and it takes courage, especially for marginalized members of our communities. But we have a responsibility to use our voice, to use our privilege."

Libraries have long been seen as a symbol of resistance to tyranny, Dieffenbach noted. In 1939, Pulitzer Prize-winning poet and Librarian of Congress Archibald MacLeish warned in a speech that failure to educate Americans on how to value and preserve democracy would spur a descent into fascism. "Those of us who are concerned, for whatever reason, with the preservation of the civilization and the inherited culture of this nation find ourselves in a situation in which time is running out not like the sand in a glass but like the blood in an opened artery," MacLeish said. "There is still time left to us. But we can foresee and foresee clearly the moment when there will be none."

After quoting MacLeish, Dieffenbach said, "A lot of that could have been said yesterday."