In FOX's defense, they also do stuff like this: http://annatarkov.posterous.com/judges-and…

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To suggest that we should get rid of libraries, simply because our politicians have driven the state into financial ruin, is to suggest that there should be special treatment for the have's and the have not's. Those who can afford to have the Internet and buy books, more power to you. Those who cannot, well...tough. Make sure you remember this treatment at the ballot box.

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MH,

That was an argument that definately would have worked ten years ago, perhaps even five years ago. But right now there are computers available for $200. That will probably fall even farther. Nearly everyone of all income levels will soon have a cell phone that can access the internet. The question of whether it makes sense to spend all the money currently spent on libraries is something that I could very easily see was going to come up. I'm surprised it took this long for any news organization to bring it up. We will encounter this question pretty frequently over the next couple decades.

I don't think we should get rid of libraries. I haven't had a chance to watch that Fox report yet. I doubt it states that explicitly. There is still an advantage of reading things, especially regular books, in the printed form. But I think clear questions should be asked about whether it makes sense to spend the type of money on libraries that was needed in a very different era. Everybody seems to be living in la-la land with this. There have been proposals in certain suburbs(and in the city as well, though the economy has caused them not to go anywhere) to expand libraries and build new ones. They all seem to occur in a world divorced by reality in which the people making the proposals haven't noticed the changes that have occurred around them.

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This is as intelligent a "debate" as asking if we should replace fire departments with baking soda and police departments with really stern glares. Honestly.

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By far, the funniest part of that segment was the anti-library talking head suggesting people use the Internet instead of libraries... which would seem to imply pirating books instead of checking them out of the library.

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"I haven't had a chance to watch that Fox report yet."

Fortunately, you did have the time to type up a couple of paragraphs on the subject. Using a computer at the library by any chance?

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This is so disheartening- i don't even have time to follow up with all the crazy shit happening in our world and now libraries?!

yes, i was sad when my branch became closed on sundays, and then they cut their hours... but as compared to my best friend who lives in a tiny small town 20 or so miles away from Raleigh N.C., who is a stay at home mom, of two, and an avid and voracious reader who basically refers to the library like it is her other BFF and lifeline, and place to take her daughters once each week minimum, literally their big adventure away from home- for her the closing of her local branch is much more saddening than for somebody like me. her town is 60 or 70 percent black, the poorest town in the country, the one that NEEDS the library the most (i guess too many black kids who don't have computers at home were abusing the free computer time and Internet there- by golly, at least they're not in the streets, their looking up bands on myspace for godsakes?!) and naturally when the politicians and the people with clout make all the decisions on how to spend the tax dollars that they treat like they're on pet project piggy bank, they declare the library in my friend's town is too old and they'll get rid of it & then remodel some fancy library in a wealthier burb miles away where people don't even use the library with the zest like they do in my friend's town!!

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Oh, quick correction: she lives in poorest town in her county, not country, there's other typos but this is just a blog comment

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I think our money would be better spent on libraries, not on stuff that gets advertised on Fox "News."

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I agree with the overall response here. I think libraries offer a whole lot more than what the Internet can provide and, anyone who says different, hasn't been to a local library in a long, long time.

In tough financial times, people will always rant and rave about how we spend too much on this or that. But while many other organizations and businesses are raising their costs due to a slow economy, the library continues to do more with less. But I guess the library's sole purpose of providing for the community, on a continually tightening budget, isn't good enough for us to spend our taxes on.

I'm sure there are also articles suggesting ways in which communities could reduce their police force and fire departments to save money. However, until you have a robbery or a fire, you'll never know how much this "tax savings" actually cost you. Maybe you agree that libraries are the same way, but maybe you don't. To understand the necessity of a library, go visit one. Go see all that they have to offer.

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Our public libraries are equally accessible to all citizens, cost the individual and the state very little, and deliver indisputable benefits to those who use them. Many, and perhaps most, are vital community centers, with meeting rooms and active programs that reach out with a mission of local civic participation based on the free exchange of information and ideas.
In short, what better reason to get rid of them? They are clearly dangerous.

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For doing this report, Anna Davlantes is at best a fool, and at worst maliciously disingenuous.

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The Original IAC said "I haven't had a chance to watch that Fox report yet. I doubt it states that explicitly. "

You had a chance to write 239 words about a report you didn't even watch? The report is under 6 minutes long and it's right there at the top of the page. Take a look.

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The library is so much more then internet and books. The library offers children's programming, computer instruction, job skills and job training. The library is a free service to anyone who seeks help. Just because you can look up a definition online does not mean the library is useless. The library is a place to be read aloud to, which builds active listening skills in children. The library is a place to hear a storyteller which allows children to imagine and pretend. The library is a place to explore on the computers for those who do not have access. The library is a place for children to spend time after school and in the summer. I would much prefer students at the library than loitering the streets losing brain power.

I love the library and am saddened that the library hours have been cut as well as staff.

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Chicago Public Library has been spared some of the more brutal treatment doled out to other public library systems across the country. Yes, hours have been cut and a handful of branches have either closed or been slated to close. But have to give the mayor credit for doing more than just giving lip service to the idea that libraries are an important part of the community.

This Fox News item was so light on real facts as to be almost useless. They devoted six minutes and all we got was a set up for the dude who came on to argue that libraries are a waste of tax dollars. What an ass.

Outside of public safety, cannot think of a better use of tax revenue. Considering Chicago schools no longer have a librarian on staff, where are students supposed to go to do research for school papers and projects?

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In an economic recession, library usage increases tremendously, and just like every other government sector, they have their budgets slashed. So they have to serve exponentially more users with far fewer staff members. Chicago Public Library has already laid off much of their paraprofessional and support staff, and they have been on a hiring freeze for three years. Mr. Tobin's comments about paperbacks and the costs of books lowering say little about libraries and far more about the fact that he is white, upper class, and out of touch with both libraries and the nation as a whole. Yes, books do come in paperback; and yes, I have personally purchased paperback books that cost well over $100. Books are not that cheap, especially books for research purposes, art books, sheet music, etc. And as luv2read posted, the library does so much more that merely provide books. Harold Washington provides practice rooms for musicians who may have no where else to hone their skills; CPL provides access to recordings, media, new releases, and yes, the internet. For Mr. Tobin, it may be unfathomable that someone may not be able to afford a laptop that is "only" $200, a hefty sum for anyone at or under the poverty line, plus at least $40 per month for internet. Public libraries are the only institutions capable of bridging the economic divide and providing not only the technology to people who may not be able to afford it, but the programming to teach them how to use it. Many employers providing the majority of jobs only accept online applications; think how frustrating it must be if you not only do not have internet, but perhaps have very little idea how to use an online application system or speak little English.
While it is encouraging to see others leave comments defending the library, this segment really does not deserve the attention. It is a poorly constructed opinion piece with absolutely no research behind it to give it any weight.

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"Also, your argument that nearly everyone could soon afford a computer is the same as Henry Ford stating that there won't be a need for public transportation by 1950."

Henry Ford was off by about ten years. From my understanding of history (I wasn't alive then) it was about 1960 that public transit became obsolete with regard to its original purpose of providing people transportation. After that, public transit only became useful for the purpose of moving people around dense areas for which the infrastucture doesn't support the amount of traffic and parking neccessary for the population and jobs available. There is, of course, virtually no public transit in suburban and rural areas with the exception of the service to and from the dense urban areas.

Anyways, this is only loosely related to what I was talking about. I never said physical books (or libraries) will become obsolete. In fact, I actually own stock in both Barnes & Noble and Borders because I think people are overreacting to the threat of e-books. All I said was that the taxpayers and their elected officials need to consider the way things have changed and that it makes sense for libraries to cut some of the things that no longer serve the purpose they once did. Virtually nobody, for example, uses libraries anymore to research reference materials. Almost all of that is available on the internet. Yet from what I can tell, most libraries still subscribe to numerous physical journal articles and employ fairly expensive reference librarians. That doesn't seem to me to be a good use of money when there are very serous things being cutoff from state dollars. There also should be libraries that are closed. There is no reason whatsoever why every suburb or community in the city needs its own library. What is so difficult about driving (or riding a bus) a few miles? Adjacent suburbs should talk to each other over ways to combine costs and jointly operate one location instead of two. I think people will always use libraries to check out books. But their former other use as research institutions have already essentually become obsolete.

Yes, FGFM and Skulk, I have now watched the report. No, I wasn't commenting before about something I didn't watch. I wasn't responding to the report. I was commenting about people's reactions to the subject it covered. Watching the report wasn't neccessary to do this. Now that I have seen it I can confirm that nothing about it would have altered what I said in my earlier comment.

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"Yes, FGFM and Skulk, I have now watched the report. No, I wasn't commenting before about something I didn't watch. I wasn't responding to the report. I was commenting about people's reactions to the subject it covered. Watching the report wasn't neccessary [sic] to do this. Now that I have seen it I can confirm that nothing about it would have altered what I said in my earlier comment."

Sheer poetry.

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"Wisdom and knowledge, as well as virtue, diffused generally among the body of the people being necessary for the preservation of their rights and liberties; and as these depend on spreading the opportunities and advantages of education in various parts of the country, and among the different orders of the people, it commonwealth to cherish the interests of literature and the science, and all seminaries of them, especially the university at Cambridge, public schools, and grammar schools in towns; to encourage private societies and public institutions, rewards and immunities, for the promotion of agriculture, arts, sciences, commerce, trades, manufactures, and a natural history of the country; to countenance and inculcate the principles of humanity and general benevolence, public and private charity, industry and frugality, honesty and punctuality in their dealings, sincerity, good humor, and all social affections, and generous sentiments among the people." -John Adams 1778, "The Encouragement of Literature, Etc."

The Chicago Public Library certainly works hard to live up to this founding father's strong belief in offering education to promote a good society. Promoting the betterment of society? Brilliant! so very forward thinking or Puritanical, actually.
Thank you CPL. I am grateful for everything you provide. You are a boon to each community your branches reside in and the variety of resources, programs, and skills you offer to all you serve are priceless. It is truly amazing what you accomplish with such a small (2.5%) amount of funds. Imagine what could be done with more!

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Wow, that Jim Tobin guys really doesn't know what he's talking about. Public librarians do not make considerably more than their counterparts in the private sector, for starters. typical "my tax dollars shound't go to anything that doesn't benefit me directly" mentality.

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The most valuable thing about public libraries is that they are, in fact, "public." The argument that they may become obsolete because everyone will soon be able to buy a computer is as short-sighted as the argument that public transportation should become obsolete because everyone can afford a car, or that public musical and cultural events should become obsolete because everyone has a TV.

Any society needs a "public sphere" to affirm its status as a society, rather than just a collection of atomized individuals. In our world, where "public" life increasingly consists of individuals walking around ensconsed in their own electronic cocoons, effectively isolated from their physical and social environments, the public sphere is in danger of bein effectively obliterated.

Public libraries allow us to partake of literature, other arts, and discourse in a common space with other people -- and we can do it without going shopping! In other words, they're among the last refuges of non-commodified, non-privatized life and values left in our society.

For that reason alone, libraries need to be supported and, yes, expanded.

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For those of you speaking out on behalf of libraries: thank you. Small-minded reports such as this one require prompt rebuttal, and it warms my heart to see so many people doing exactly that. (Local Fox news affiliates in Philadelphia and Boston ran similar stories earlier this week, and were met with the same response as the one in Chicago.)

Speaking as a librarian, we need more of you to speak up, and put it in concrete terms. It's easy for people to say they love their local library, but emotional appeals only go so far. What has the library helped you to accomplish? Has it helped you find a job, write a paper, or discover a new author? More than just a place, the library can be a platform for personal growth and community development. More people need to see that it's not something so easily replaced by the Internet.

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Ms. Greenwalt --

I don't know if this is what you're asking for, but in my case the public library is the focal point of some of my most cherished childhood memories.

Like any other kid, I spent a lot of Saturdays playing baseball, hide-and-seek, and other things. But a lot of Saturdays were spent otherwise: I'd walk downtown to the library and immerse myself in a world of miracle and wonder. I still remember the thrill of anticipation as I walked the mile or so from my house to the corner where the library stood. And I can still feel the thrill of revelation that overcame me when I finally entered its doors. This must have been how ancient people felt when they entered a temple, a shrine, or a hallowed repository of the ancestors -- Books! Reading! Journies! Mysteries! Life! A carnival of the imagination, all for the taking! The sense of wonder that was unleashed in me when I passed through that magical portal has never left me.

For the next several hours I immersed myself in those journies. I'd read about exotic animals in the Amazon Rainforests; the exploits of old-time ballplayers; the adventures of Vikings on the sea; the life and times of the Colonial Founding Fathers; the adventures of fictional travelers, swashbucklers, sinners, and saints. I'd transport myself to times, places, and worlds unseen but so vividly imagined and experienced that I could almost believe I'd visited them in person. And when I left, I left carrying an armload of books that I'd devour ravenously over the course of the next week, only to lug them back downtown to the library the following Saturday and start the process all over again.

It probably goes without saying that I remain a voracious reader; I'm also an English Composition instructor at one of the City Colleges of Chicago, as well as a freelance writer and author. Is all of this directly due to my early immersion in the world of reading and imagination that I experienced at the public library so many years ago? Well, not entirely. But I do believe that those treasured Saturday mornings surrounded by, and immersed in, books laid the foundation for most of what eventually came to pass in my intellectual and professional life.

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"Virtually nobody, for example, uses libraries anymore to research reference materials. Almost all of that is available on the internet. "

Wrong and wrong. Yes, there is a lot of research material online, but much of the hard core scholarly or business material is either a) fee-based or b) not written for the layperson or the high school or college student. Much of the rest of it is junk. Try writing a quality marketing study using just free stuff online and see how far you get. Libraries still subscribe to periodicals and reference materials, but many of them are online through the library, giving people access to the good stuff they can't get for free. We also index and preserve the old stuff that has NOT been digitized, especially local history and newspapers.

As a reference librarian I can tell you that we still get a few thousand reference questions a month. Some are from "digital divide" patrons who don't have computer access or don't know how to use the web effectively, but many are true research questions, either for business, school, health etc. I've helped people write business plans, research costumes and set designs, figure out how to renew their visas, and apply for government benefits. I helped a grief stricken woman find the legal documentation she needed to deal with an unscrupulous funeral home. Reference librarians simply have more experience with searching online, and have a better idea of what's out there: we save people time.

Just this month we helped a guy who wanted a book about things you find in a hardware store. He was going to be working at Lemoi's and wanted to be able to appear like he knew what he was doing. Then, last week, he returned -- said things were going great at Lemoi's and that he had gotten another job at a shoe store and wanted to find out about men's shoes so he could do a good job there as well. We had reference books that helped him in both cases; pointing him to a website wouldn't have done any good since he wasn't comfortable with computers, (although we did sign him up for some of our computer classes).

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