|
 As the variety and sheer amount
of information available have exploded during the digital revolution,
the role of libraries and librarians is undergoing a transformation unseen
since the invention of the printing press. Does the ascendency of Google
spell the end of libraries as we know them, or merely make the need for
enlightened human guides more pressing? An article
in today’s Boston Globe explores these questions, and more….
Despite the fact that more people are using libraries
than ever before, their funding continues to decrease. More than $80 million
has been cut from public library budgets in the past year alone, which
has weakened or closed libraries in more than 40 states.
In addition to budgetary issues, about 70 percent of librarians will reach
retirement age within the next 20 years. Who will take their place? Librarians
don’t rake in the multimillion-dollar salaries of major league ball players.
They gain their rewards from helping a lonely senior citizen locate family
members online, reading a book to a young child, or assisting a mother
searching for information on college loans for her children. Eighty percent
of librarians report being very satisfied with their career choice.
from the
Boston Globe
|