Libraries Lead‪!‬ Beth Patin, Dave Lankes, & Mike Eisenberg

It’s March Madness, and we both readily admit it – we are sports junkies. We are VERY dedicated fans taking our teams’ successes (or lack thereof) way too seriously. But we also enjoy looking at sports through our “information-colored” glasses. Sport has always been an information as well as physical contest, and it’s even more so today. We have Moneyball-type data analytics across sports in team building, strategy, video analysis in training and playing, (for better or worse) and pro and college teams use super powerful information processing tools. This has transformed almost all aspects of player and team development, planning and strategy, real-time decision-making, and the fan experience.  So, listen in as Beth and Mike explore the all things information (e.g., information gathering, processing, analysis, evaluation, planning) in relation to preparing for, playing, and enjoying all kinds of sports.

In our last episode, #21 – January 2023, we articulated our concerns about what’s going on in higher education. We lamented the striving for status and money instead of access and affordability for students. We also felt that there’s an over-emphasis among students and families on jobs and financial benefits rather than learning and gaining a well-rounded education. We ended the episode by promising to follow-up in this episode focusing on solutions, no matter how far out there they might be. Join us as we talk about aspirations and approaches for higher education in order to expand access and opportunities so that students can gain knowledge, skills, and perspectives relevant to life today and in the future.

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The three of us are proud academics. While we come from very different backgrounds, we are all examples of the power of higher education to change lives. Furthermore, each of us has dedicated our lives to “paying it forward” through teaching, mentoring, research, and professional practice.
 However, things seem different now on campuses. The promise and fulfillment of learning, growth, and opportunity for students seems to be pushed aside by an insatiable institutional, self-serving striving for status and money as well as an over-emphasis among students and families on jobs and financial benefits. We question these priorities and wonder if it’s possible to rededicate and redirect the academy back to more balanced goals for students, society, and the institutions themselves.

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Meltdown at Twitter? Advertisers leaving, Apple may delist the Twitter app, many have canceled their Twitter accounts.  What does this mean? Is there something more meaningful, valuable, and humane to replace it -perhaps a trustworthy, digital platform for the exchange of information and ideas moderated for credibility and trust? Should librarians seek to shape or support a Twitter replacement?  What's a reasonable stance for librarians in the face of free speech versus responsible speech? Let’s talk.

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Episode 19: WHAT?????
February 21st. 2022
Beth Patin, Dave Lankes, & Mike Eisenberg
What is going on in this world? Librarians in the crosshairs! Book censorship and actual book burnings! Heavy-handed government control of schools, curriculum, higher education, libraries! Handmaid’s Tale-like nightmare in terms of women’s rights! Climate catastrophes! War in Ukraine. Strife - hatred - violence! WTF?????

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Episode 18: The Censors are Coming! The Censors are Coming!
May 2022
Beth Patin, Dave Lankes, & Mike Eisenberg

It is happening here. Again. There’s a huge increase in efforts to censor what is taught or even discussed in school along with banning, and in some cases even burning books in schools and libraries. In this episode, we delve into the nature of these threats along with ways to counteract them.
 The same people who profess to champion freedom and rail against cancel culture, wokeness, safe places, and hurt feelings now want to censor and ban books, pass laws against teaching about race or sexuality, and “protect” kids and ourselves from ideas, science, or history that might be upsetting. What is this all about, and what are the implications, particularly for libraries and schools?

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