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"The Soup We are In" – Reflections on Post-neutrality Librarianship.
- Source :
-
Public Library Quarterly . 2023, Vol. 42 Issue 6, p602-621. 20p. - Publication Year :
- 2023
-
Abstract
- The concept of neutrality has long been central to debates on and within librarianship. In the fall of 2021, the online symposium Post-neutrality Librarianship gathered library professionals from research and practice to discuss the concept of post-neutrality and how it manifests regionally, contextually, in societies, and communities. The papers and presentations represented international perspectives on neutrality and post-neutrality in relation to academic, university, and public libraries. From the perspectives of two participating researchers, this paper offers a reflexive summary of the symposium. Although post-neutrality librarianship was the theme of the symposium, a central part of the discussions centered on the questions of neutrality or post-neutrality and whether being neutral is, in fact, possible. Such questions impose a binary reading of neutrality and post-neutrality, which echoes historical debates about library neutrality. This paper problematizes such binary readings of neutrality and post-neutrality. By introducing examples of historical neutrality debates through a discourse analysis framework, the paper seeks to exemplify how the concept of post-neutrality bears with it certain narratives and discourses about neutrality, which co-exist within librarianship today. Acknowledging the interrelation between these concepts allows for reflexive readings and nuanced discussions of librarianship in the era of post-neutrality. The paper, then, summarizes central discussions from the symposium under three dominating themes: the role of libraries, the role of librarians, and the role of LIS education, all relating to how and why LIS professionals, librarians, and researchers should navigate in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
Details
- Language :
- English
- ISSN :
- 01616846
- Volume :
- 42
- Issue :
- 6
- Database :
- Academic Search Index
- Journal :
- Public Library Quarterly
- Publication Type :
- Academic Journal
- Accession number :
- 172046062
- Full Text :
- https://doi.org/10.1080/01616846.2022.2149017