Aughhhh!!! We knew this was coming, but it still hurts – even more. As part of the chain-saw destruction of much of the US federal government, the Institute for Museum and Library Services has been eliminated to the maximum extend of the law and ordered to reduce services and personnel to the minimum required by law. All budget requests from IMLS are rejected except those to shut down the agencies. And yes, the Executive Order usurps the intent of Congress.   

 According to ALA, “[l]ibrary funding draws less than 0.003% of the annual federal budget yet has enormous impact in communities nationwide.” The Libraries Lead team knows this firsthand having received R&D funding from IMLS and through working with libraries of all kinds across the US. It’s a tsunami and the effects are massive. 

In this episode, we share our disgust and anger at the devastating actions by the Tump administration. This is a gut punch and we need to catch our collective breaths, celebrate this outstanding agency, and then figure out what we can do individually and together to fight back.

With Dave on vacation, Beth & Mike also take a break from the challenges and issues facing the library & information field. Since both are both avid sports fans and since it’s “March Madness” (college basketball’s post-season extravaganza) time, they build on last month’s “information perspective” by taking a look at the entire phenomenon while wearing their library & information-colored glasses. So, fill out your brackets, grab a beverage and snacks, root for your favorite teams, and join Beth & Mike as they share and challenge each other’s perceptions and predictions.

 All three of us are hopelessly biased. We look at the world through “information-colored glasses.” This means that when we engage in any and all aspects of human life – work, play, learning – we can’t help but consider what’s going on from an information perspective. In any situation or in relation to any “person, place, or thing,” we almost unconsciously begin to identify and ponder the nature and influence of all things information including (but not limited to ) information systems, processes, artifacts, resources, management, behaviors, and ethics. 

 We find this information perspective to be incredibly valuable and interesting as we try to make sense of “life, the universe, and everything else.” We’ve studied, taught, presented, and applied an information perspective in many many settings. 

 Therefore, in this episode of the Libraries Lead podcast, we share the information perspective in terms of what, why, and how it may be useful for you too to put on “information-colored glasses.”

From the Libraries Lead Podcast - February 2025, AI Watch Segment. 

In this 12 minute video, Dave Lankes explains why DeepSeek is such a big deal. Then, he blows our minds by demonstrating how DeepSeek works and maybe even ... thinks(?) because DeepSeek includes its "chain of thought reasoning and prompting" as it answers questions. Take a look and listen for "under-the-hood" insights into DeepSeek and other AIs.

Audio only is available here. 

For the full video of this bonus episode, please go to - https://librarieslead.libraryjournal.com/2025/02/02/ai-watch-feb-2025-deepseek/

Library & information science for decades has focused on the “user” perspective in systems and services. This includes HCI (human-computer interaction), interfaces, features in search and catalog systems, and ways of improving services (e.g., online/chat reference, maker spaces, events). We provide systems, resources, and services and users use them. Furthermore, "users (or customers) know best," so we should develop and improve systems primarily through user feedback.
 
 But maybe it’s time to move on from piecemeal innovations or improvements for customers, and consider people as whole persons and their places in "community."  A customer orientation implies short-term interactions while people in communities are there for the long haul. In this episode, the Libraries Lead team considers this alternative approach and discusses what this might look like for all types of libraries as well as the major information and social media systems used extensively today. 

In the beginning … of our dot com digital age (roughly from the late 1970s) … there was a expectation that information and computer technology (ICT) would be a boon to society. Technology could be liberating rather than oppressing. The hope was that new products and services (e.g., personal computers, the Internet, the WWW, search engines, smart phones, social media)  would lead to a more equitable, open, and free society. Sadly, that didn’t happen. Instead, the pervasive goal in ICT became monetization—to make a buck and to maximize profits as much and as quickly as possible.

 In this episode we’re not going to argue whether this is good or bad thing. We accept that the dominant characteristic in ICT was and still is the drive for commercial triumph. And with an information economy estimated to be around $5.5 trillion today (and growing), there is success beyond anyone’s wildest dreams.

 Instead, we want to examine the implications of all this profit-seeking in the information sector. We’ve become aware of a disturbing trend: the decline of the quality in online products and services over time. This phenomenon is described in a Wikipedia entry as “Enshittification” where vendors and entrepreneurs initially “create high-quality offerings to attract users, then they degrade those offerings to better serve business customers, and finally degrade their services to users and business customers to maximize profits for shareholders.” 

 How big of a concern is enshittification in relation to the nature and quality of information resources and services in the commercial and public sectors? And of course, do we see this trend in the library world as well?

Dave explores NotebookLM’s podcasting feature. NotebookLM is an AI system from Google that lets you create a workspace around documents that summarizes, creates study guides, and much more. One of the features is creating an “Audio Overview” that transforms your notes and documents into a two person podcast. Dave was impressed, see what you think.  And let us know!!

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The election is over, and the reactions are emotional and raw. Some people are cheering; others crying. America is still as divided politically and socially as the day before. Putting those things aside, let’s look ahead from an information & library perspective. What’s in store for us as individuals, families and communities? Are there lessons learned from the campaigns and result from an information perspective? What might the next few years look like for libraries and librarians and those who use and rely on library resources and service? Are there opportunities for libraries to serve and thrive or will it require us to play defense in order to simply survive?

Natural and human-made crises, disasters, emergencies, and catastrophes. Whatever the cause (climate change, poverty, disease, overpopulation, war), it's undeniable that communities and individuals are continually facing daunting problems and challenges across the globe. In the first year of this podcast in Episode 11 (Nov 2021), we discussed how everyday people are just trying to survive, the roles and responsibilities of government and public service officials in dealing with crises, and of course, how library & information staff and institutions can provide essential services and resources.

 It's 3 years later, and in the face of even more severe hurricanes, fires, wars, and more chaos globally, we again focus on this crucial topic. Three years ago, Beth Patin was our guest speaker. She was a leading "crisis informatics" expert due to her work after Hurricane Katrina and her PhD studies. Now, as a tri-host of this podcast, she leads us through an update on this topic--the current status, how we've progressed or declined in our collective ability to deal with crises, and how the library & information field can play an even more active and visible role in preparing for, during, and recovering from these disasters.

“A mom. A public servant. A librarian. A defender against book banning and censorship. Utahns will be well served by Rebekah’s leadership through her advocacy for intellectual freedom and commitment to empowering families.”

Rebekah is the Director of Digital Matters and Associate Librarian at the University of Utah Marriott Library. In 2018 – 2019, Rebekah served as the Utah Library Association President, and she currently serves as the Utah State Library Board Chair. Since 2019, Rebekah has championed library issues and funding as Co-Chair of the Utah Library Association Advocacy Committee. In this role, she and her advocacy partners have won multiple awards, including the 2019 American Library Association Gerald Hodges Intellectual Freedom Award, 2021 Utah Library Association Legislative Award for Excellence in Political Affairs and Library Advocacy, and 2023 ACLU Utah Torch of Freedom Award for the Let Utah Read coalition.

NOTE: THIS INTERVIEW IS AVAILABLE AS A VIDEO ON THE LIBRARY JOURNAL YouTube Channel - https://youtu.be/kHrNVvyQD_g