Comments on: Wake County is Censoring MySpace

By: Anon, please

Anon, please — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 12:52:30 +0000

If it were just about content, that would be one thing. It might well be an issue of security as well– the fact is that MySpace draws a certain crowd to the library, and if you don't have the money to pay for the security to control that crowd, you've got to figure out some way to dissuade them from coming to the library. Libraries just shouldn't have to deal with the kind of security issues (patron assault, drug use, some very close calls with gang violence).

By: davidleeking

davidleeking — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 19:27:52 +0000

Most state statutes have definitions of what’s legal/what’s not, and the teen in “hardly nothing,” while certainly offensive to some, doesn’t fit that definition. It’d be in the same category as the models in GQ Magazine.

Here’s another way to go about this: have you talked to your supervisor/management about this, since you seem to think this is a big issue? What did they say?

By: Library Mark

Library Mark — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 18:26:13 +0000

“15-year-old girls wearing next to nothing,” and then you say they’re looking at porn on MySpace. The two aren’t the same.”

I beg to differ. If a person is looks at a teen wearing nothing but her panties and gets his/her jollies from it, that’s porn.

You know, it’s the patrons who actually pay taxes (and our salaries) who are being denied access to the computers while the kids mindlessly surf. This seems hardly fair to me.

By: davidleeking

davidleeking — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 12:33:16 +0000

Library Mark – I would suggest taking a step back from this argument and look at what you’re saying. Earlier, you say the kids are looking at “15-year-old girls wearing next to nothing,” and then you say they’re looking at porn on MySpace. The two aren’t the same.

And then you say “they are on myspace learning nothing but how to spell extremely poorly.” That suggests rather highly that they’re doing much more than “just look[ing] at pictures.”

I personally agree – I think there are absolutes, too. But libraries have ALWAYS had material that would highly offend some people – be it the Bible or the Joy of Sex. So the value judgement argument stays – by trying to overlay your definition of “real work” onto others, you are indeed making a value judgement on your patrons.

By: Library Mark

Library Mark — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 11:36:21 +0000

Along with being our network tech, I am also a librarian, and think that it is about time that other librarians consider the fact that the internet is NOT like a book or any other library resource. You can’t get solicited by a pervert from a book. We don’t have pornography in print, but it’s available on myspace. You can’t recruit gang members while reading the newspaper, but can on myspace.

And no – nearly all of the kids in our library just look at pictures – along with simply watching them surf, I run software that can prove this. We are in an extreme inner-city setting, right across the street from two inner-city schools. After school, all of the computers are dominated by kids that could be exploring the web and possibly expanding their horizons, but instead they are on myspace learning nothing but how to spell extremely poorly.

For me, it all boils down to this: Do we want people to enrich their lives, or just waste their time? Please, no more lectures on value judgments – some things are absolute. Our computers are a valuable finite resources that could be used by people who need the them to do real work – instead, they are TV for the kiddies.

By: davidleeking

davidleeking — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 03:07:56 +0000

Thanks for sharing, Library Mark. I would disagree with you, of course. Not sure you realize this, but in a library setting, your “I just don’t see the value in it” is placing a value judgement over certain types of content – librarians don’t do that (or shouldn’t, anyway).

I’m pretty sure those “kids” aren’t ONLY looking at scantily clad girls. Instead of complaining, why not hold a MySpace forum at your library and find out what other things those kids are doing, and how you can help serve ALL your customers better?

By: Library Mark

Library Mark — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 01:59:42 +0000

We DO use a computer management system – PCCop. It limits the amount of time that each patron can be on a computer. It does a decent job, but at any given time, I would say (I am the network admin) that 90% of the time after school is out, myspace is on the screen with streaming video and audio. I just don’t see the value in it. Adults looking for a job should NEVER have to wait behind a kid getting his jollies by looking at 15-year-old girls wearing next to nothing.

By: davidleeking

davidleeking — Wed, 05 Dec 2007 17:52:33 +0000

library mark – yes, but I don’t think banning certain sites is the answer. If you attempt to ban sites that eat bandwidth, you’re fighting an uphill battle – and MySpace is the least of your worries.

A better bet is to manage your computer resources better (ie., sign-up sheets, a computer management system, etc).

By: library mark

library mark — Mon, 03 Dec 2007 23:29:55 +0000

I work at a library where I dearly wish they WOULD ban myspace. It is ruining the internet experience of all the other patrons because of not only the horrible behavior of people who “use” the site but because it is eating all our bandwidth. Our internet connection is a finite resource; allowing some to use it all up at the expense of the rest of our internet-using patrons is simply unfair.

By: How sticky is your library? « The Leapin’ Librarian

How sticky is your library? « The Leapin’ Librarian — Sat, 12 May 2007 16:44:37 +0000

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