Michael Gorman (librarian)
Encyclopedia
Michael Gorman is a British-born librarian
Librarian
A librarian is an information professional trained in library and information science, which is the organization and management of information services or materials for those with information needs...

, library scholar
Library scholar
A library scholar is a researcher or academic who specializes in the history or development of libraries or their internal processes, such as cataloging and knowledge organization .-Examples:* James Duff Brown* Melvil Dewey* Michael Gorman...

 and editor/writer on library issues noted for his traditional views. During his tenure as president of the American Library Association
American Library Association
The American Library Association is a non-profit organization based in the United States that promotes libraries and library education internationally. It is the oldest and largest library association in the world, with more than 62,000 members....

 (ALA), he was vocal in his opinions on a range of subjects, notably technology and education. He currently lives in the Chicago area with his wife, Anne Reuland, a librarian at Loyola University.

Early life and career

Gorman grew up in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...

, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

 and became interested in libraries
Library
In a traditional sense, a library is a large collection of books, and can refer to the place in which the collection is housed. Today, the term can refer to any collection, including digital sources, resources, and services...

 in part through his experiences at Hendon library and particularly its Children's Library run by a pioneer in the field Eileen Colwell
Eileen Colwell
Eileen Hilda Colwell was a pioneer children’s librarian.Born in Robin Hood’s Bay in Yorkshire, Colwell was the third daughter of a Methodist minister. She obtained a scholarship and studied librarianship at University College...

. He attended Ealing Technical College (now Thames Valley University
Thames Valley University
The University of West London is a public university based in London, United Kingdom, with campuses in Ealing and Brentford, London, and Reading, Berkshire....

) in London from 1964-1966.
  • 1966 to 1977 - Head of Cataloguing at the British National Bibliography, a member of the British Library Planning Secretariat, and Head of the Office of Bibliographic Standards in the British Library
    British Library
    The British Library is the national library of the United Kingdom, and is the world's largest library in terms of total number of items. The library is a major research library, holding over 150 million items from every country in the world, in virtually all known languages and in many formats,...

    .
  • 1977 to 1988 - Director of Technical Services, Director of General Services, and Acting University Librarian at Library of the University of Illinois
    University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
    The University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign is a large public research-intensive university in the state of Illinois, United States. It is the flagship campus of the University of Illinois system...

  • 1988 to 2007 - Dean of Library Services at the Henry Madden Library, California State University, Fresno
    California State University, Fresno
    California State University, Fresno, often referred to as Fresno State University and synonymously known in athletics as Fresno State , is one of the leading campuses of the California State University system, located at the northeast edge of Fresno, California, USA.The campus sits at the foot of...

    , retiring in 2007.
  • 2005 to 2006 - President of the American Library Association
    American Library Association
    The American Library Association is a non-profit organization based in the United States that promotes libraries and library education internationally. It is the oldest and largest library association in the world, with more than 62,000 members....

     (ALA).


He has also taught at library schools in Britain
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

 and in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 - most recently at the UCLA
University of California, Los Angeles
The University of California, Los Angeles is a public research university located in the Westwood neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, USA. It was founded in 1919 as the "Southern Branch" of the University of California and is the second oldest of the ten campuses...

 Graduate School of Education and Information Studies
UCLA Graduate School of Education and Information Studies
The Graduate School of Education and Information Studies is one of the professional graduate schools at the University of California, Los Angeles...

.

Gorman's ideas

Gorman bases his principles of librarianship on core liberal democratic, humanistic values. His key influence is Ranganathan, whom he regarded as “the greatest figure of librarianship in the twentieth century” : Gorman has adapted and reinterpreted his five laws of librarianship, in an attempt to make them relevant to librarians in the digital age. Underlying Gorman’s fervent defence of his values of librarianship is a strong apprehension regarding the future of the profession. He maintains that it is through focussing on core professional values that librarians will facilitate personal growth and enhance the success of their institutions.

Eight central values of librarianship

In Our Enduring Values, Gorman identified eight central values of librarianship :
  1. Stewardship : Gorman argues that librarians have a key role to play in preserving the human record for future generations. He maintains that librarians must pass on their best values to future information professionals
  2. Service : According to Gorman, an ethic of service should permeate all library policies and practices. Gorman stresses the duty of librarians to serve individuals, communities and societies is best fulfilled through a combination of professional skills, empathy and personal dedication. He argues that librarians need to act idealistically in a materialistic age.
  3. Intellectual Freedom : Librarians lead the fight for intellectual freedom. Librarians, Gorman maintains, must zealously fight to protect free expression of thought, even if the ideas concerned contradict the librarian’s own personal convictions
  4. Privacy : The freedom to access whatever materials an individual wishes, without the knowledge or interference of others. Gorman insists that confidentiality is a “bond of trust” between libraries and their patrons.
  5. Rationalism : Gorman argues that libraries are “children of the Enlightenment and of rationalism” and that librarianship is a “supremely rational profession”. This principle should underpin library procedures, and encourage the logical organization and classification of stock.
  6. Commitment to literacy and learning : Reading is of central importance to literacy and lifelong learning. Gorman formulates a broad definition of ‘literacy’ beyond the mere ability to read, write and surf the net: his concept encompasses comprehensive, ‘true’ reading which is fulfilling and expands the mind.
  7. Equity of access : Gorman argues that the ‘digital divide’ is but one manifestation of societal inequality and that all library services, in particular reference services, have a role to play in bridging the gap and providing equity of access.
  8. Democracy : Gorman describes libraries as “supremely democratic institutions”. Because democracy, he insists, depends on a “well-informed electorate” the library is integral to promoting education and maintaining democracy. If people are to exercise good judgement in electing representatives, they need to be highly informed and have access to written records: the library plays a central role therefore in maintaining democracy.

Critique of his values

Gorman’s selection and defence of his eight central values has attracted some criticism: for example, his championing of ‘stewardship’ as a central ethical tenet unique to librarianship, which cannot be shared by other information professionals, has been attacked as “too narrow and exclusive”. His impassioned defence of intellectual freedom has also been dismissed in some quarters as “empty rhetoric” and “hyperbole”. Gorman’s views have also been dismissed as contradictory: on the one hand he praises Ranganthan as the inventor of library science; on the other he claims library science is a “bogus discipline”.
These Eight Values have been heavily influenced by the Buddhist Noble Eightfold path
Noble Eightfold Path
The Noble Eightfold Path , is one of the principal teachings of the Buddha, who described it as the way leading to the cessation of suffering and the achievement of self-awakening. It is used to develop insight into the true nature of phenomena and to eradicate greed, hatred, and delusion...

.

Five New Laws of Librarianship

Gorman has expanded and added a more contemporary focus to Ranganathan’s
S. R. Ranganathan
Shiyali Ramamrita Ranganathan was a mathematician and librarian from India. His most notable contributions to the field were his five laws of library science and the development of the first major analytico-synthetic classification system, the colon classification...

 Five Laws of Library Science
Five laws of library science
The Five laws of library science is a theory proposed by S. R. Ranganathan in 1931, detailing the principles of operating a library system. Many librarians worldwide accept them as the foundations of their philosophy.These laws are:#Books are for use....

. The re-working of the class five laws is an attempt “to meet the challenges of fast paced social and cultural changes affecting library users and the rapid proliferation of technology in library operations”.
The five laws are:
  1. Libraries serve humanity : This law encompasses the assistance of individuals and the lofty ideal of the “furtherance of the higher aspirations of mankind”. This law also implies an altruistic desire to provide a quality service and to exceed the expectations of all users.
  2. Respect all forms by which knowledge is communicated : Gorman advocates the use of various forms of “carriers of knowledge and information”. He recommends a utilitarian approach – using whatever is more effective, costly or advantageous.
  3. Use technology intelligently to enhance service Librarians : Gorman argues, must welcome and integrate new technologies. Yet he is clear that print-on-paper will remain the “pre-eminent medium for the communication of cumulative knowledge” Technology must be used to solve problems and improve services, and achieve cost-effectiveness, rather than adopted for its own sake.
  4. Protect free access to knowledge : Allowing the records of the past to disappear is, from Gorman’s perspective, “a kind of censorship”. It is the librarian’s responsibility to ensure intellectual freedom because Gorman asserts, a “society without uncensored libraries is a society open to tyranny”.
  5. Honor the past and create the future : Gorman advocates the need to balance nostalgia for a pre-digital past with the need to embrace new technologies, in a selective way based upon the extent to which they will enhance the library service. He points to a need to respect the accomplishments of predecessors in the field of information science, whilst celebrating new developments in the field of librarianship.

Educating the librarian

As part of his platform when running for ALA President in 2006, Gorman pledged to address what he called the education crisis.

The article Whither Library Education? set out his views on the current state of LIS education. He concluded that LIS education had become technocentric, male-dominated and out of touch with the needs of practitioners. This view was critiqued by Dillon and Norris, while both papers were critiqued by Pawley for their treatment of the issue of gender in librarianship.

Library and Information Science academics also responded in the professional press, questioning whether there was a crisis to address.

During his year in office, Gorman introduced an initiative intended to discuss the issue of education. Sessions were held with practitioners and academics. However, Gorman’s traditional views may have led to younger librarians turning away from the idea and their views not being represented:

“Whatever the case, after all that effort we still don’t know what current students and recent graduates really think about the educations upon which they spend so much money.”


Despite the initiative, accreditation and curricula remained unchanged at the end of Gorman’s tenure.

Perspectives

Gorman's views on the Internet
Internet
The Internet is a global system of interconnected computer networks that use the standard Internet protocol suite to serve billions of users worldwide...

, digitisation of books, Google
Google
Google Inc. is an American multinational public corporation invested in Internet search, cloud computing, and advertising technologies. Google hosts and develops a number of Internet-based services and products, and generates profit primarily from advertising through its AdWords program...

, citizen journalism
Citizen journalism
Citizen journalism is the concept of members of the public "playing an active role in the process of collecting, reporting, analyzing and disseminating news and information," according to the seminal 2003 report We Media: How Audiences are Shaping the Future of News and Information...

, and information science
Information science
-Introduction:Information science is an interdisciplinary science primarily concerned with the analysis, collection, classification, manipulation, storage, retrieval and dissemination of information...

 are widely discussed. Two publications in particular caused heated debate, particularly within the librarian blogging community:
  • the 2004 article “Google and God’s Mind”, originally printed in the Los Angeles Times
    Los Angeles Times
    The Los Angeles Times is a daily newspaper published in Los Angeles, California, since 1881. It was the second-largest metropolitan newspaper in circulation in the United States in 2008 and the fourth most widely distributed newspaper in the country....


  • the 2005 response article “Revenge of the Blog People!”, originally printed in Library Journal
    Library Journal
    Library Journal is a trade publication for librarians. It was founded in 1876 by Melvil Dewey . It reports news about the library world, emphasizing public libraries, and offers feature articles about aspects of professional practice...

    .

Digitisation

In 2004 Google announced its plan to digitize the collections of five major research libraries. This would allow both Google and the libraries in question, The University of Michigan, Oxford, New York Public, Harvard and Stanford, to have access to digitized copies of millions of texts. Michael Gorman, then ALA president, responded to this announcement with an article in the Los Angeles Times 'Google and God's Mind' where he made clear his disapproval of the digitisation project. This disapproval was based on what he sees as a clear distinction between information and real knowledge. Gorman defines information as facts, data, images and quotations that can be used out of context, while real knowledge denotes literary and scholarly texts. This distinction informs Gorman’s observations about online information retrieval which he characterises as being more focused on quick and easy access to facts.

In his later article, Gorman argues that to “Google boosters”, speed is of the greatest import: "...just as it is to consumers of fast “food”, but, as with fast food, rubbish is rubbish, no matter how speedily it is delivered". However, he suggests that real knowledge is acquired through a traditional scholarly approach to books.

Gorman later gave this opinion on digitising books:

...massive databases of digitized whole books, especially scholarly books, are expensive exercises in futility based on the staggering notion that, for the first time in history, one form of communication (electronic) will supplant and obliterate all previous forms.


Digital Initiatives Technology Librarian Peter Binkley discussed this view on his blog and also noted that a digitisation project does not necessarily involve shredding the books once they are scanned. He even suggests that Gorman himself highlights how digitised databases like Google’s make it possible for users to find books and order them by inter-library loan. He also refutes Gorman’s “for the first time in history” claim mentioning two previous “transformations” of information delivery over the last couple of millennia: the move from papyrus to vellum codex and the move from manuscript to the printed book. Overall, Binkley felt that, as ALA president-elect, Gorman should accept that digitisation of books is inevitable and that he should “make himself useful by working to ensure that this reformatting goes well”.

In 2006, during his term as head of the ALA, Gorman attended the Online Information Conference in London, where he criticised the library profession for being “too interested in technology”.

Gorman, however, is not opposed to digitising books per se, but feels that particular types of information, such as inter alia dictionaries, encyclopaedias and gazetteers are suitable candidates for digitisation, while other forms of real knowledge such as whole books(especially scholarly books) and large databases are not suitable for digitisation.

Blogging

Many of the responses to Gorman's article were voiced in the digital domain, with many library and information themed blogs criticising Gorman's opinions, although some bloggers agreed with some of Gorman's stance on digitisation.
Gorman credits these responses as making him aware of blogging and leading to him writing Revenge of the Blog People!, in which he criticises the blogging medium and the opinions of his critics.
This led to further heated discussion, firstly on blogs then in the professional press. Karen Schneider, an ALA member who writes the Free Range Librarian blog, dubbed the controversy “Gormangate” and shared her concerns about how his words portrayed the library profession, which was subsequently picked up by the professional press.
Library Journal, which published Gorman's piece, commented on the decision to publish the piece, noting that the discussion had been beneficial and that:

The power of the blogosphere as a new way to communicate ideas and spread news electronically has been reinforced for all [Library Journal staff].

The journal went on to announce that they would be carrying a technology blog on their website.

One blogger, Michael Stephens, who wrote an open letter to Gorman, which he published on his blog, was so inspired by the subject that he chose to write his doctoral thesis on blogging in librarianship.

Personal opinions and spokesmanship

Despite holding such an influential position in the American Library Association, Gorman has made it clear that many of his criticisms are personal and not representative of the ALA. For example, on technology and the Google digitisation, Gorman says:

“The Google project has been enthusiastically embraced and I think that is a mistake. I am not speaking on behalf of the ALA. That has no position on the Google digitisation project. I, on the other hand, do.”


While Gorman maintains that he is voicing his own opinion, it was commented that when he is identified as the president of the largest professional library organisation in North America:

...his words have huge legal, political and economic consequences for the entire information science profession.


Other commentators have also noted that irrespective of his protestations, the perception on the wider world and the media is that Gorman represents the profession and this can be detrimental to public perception of librarians.

Educating people

Gorman noted with alarm the results of an adult literacy assessment, which showed that reading proficiency of college graduates has declined in the past decade. He said he has been shocked by how few new freshmen understand how to use basic library systems, or enjoy reading for pleasure. "There is a failure in the core values of education," he said. "They're told to go to college in order to get a better job -- and that's okay. But the real task is to produce educated people."

Gorman has spoken extensively on the problems facing library education, particularly in the USA. He proposes the need to restructure library education in the 21st century, focusing on changes in curricula, faculty, and diversity in library education. Gorman believes that students are too focused on learning without goals in mind and that educators are too inclined to change everything just because the internet and all its resources has arrived and that instead, it should be used as an accompaniment to existing educational methods.

The importance of the book

Since his first book (with Walt Crawford), Gorman has stressed the important of the book in the place of the library and Gorman has suggested that only books can bestow true knowledge on the reader. He emphasises the importance of the book throughout his works. He has expressed concern at the way research has become simply typing a few works in a search engine and says that serious research is impossible to carry out using this method without the additional reading of books.

Spirituality in librarianship

Christianity

Michael Gorman presented ‘’Our Enduring Values’’ to the Association of Christian Libraries (ACL) and further reviews to his book have suggested that the eight proposed values which librarians should follow are more closely related to biblical theism than the humanistic beliefs Gorman he believes.
Further work by the ACL have developed ideas relating to the formulation of a Christian approach to library values.

Ethical beliefs

In Gorman's publications, he focuses on the importance on the preserving information and knowledge and the importance of the librarian in helping to achieve this. In Gorman's eight values, he stresses the importance of a librarian to have strong values and ethical stance because they will help the librarian in their job. Failure is bearable because the decisions that caused that failure are based on a person's own beliefs and a person secure in their values is more likely to have higher self-esteem. The importance on librarians reflecting on their own decisions and responsibilities can be seen in Our Singular Strengths and Our Own Selves which feature meditations for librarians, which librarians can use to reaffirm their own profession.

Publications

Gorman has written extensively about librarianship and issues in library science in the professional and academic press, as well as editing and authoring several books, including:
  • Anglo-American Cataloging Rules, 2nd ed (2005) ALA Editions; 2nd edition ISBN 0838935552 - Gorman was the first editor of the Anglo-American Cataloging Rules second edition in 1978. AACR2 is one of the most popular cataloguing systems in the world; this guidebook accompanies the system, and aims to explain the rules for cataloguing library materials in simplified terms for practitioners and students.
  • The Concise AACR2 (2004) Facet Publishing; 4th revised edition ISBN 1856045407 - now in its fourth edition, this revision aims to explain the more generally applicable AACR2 rules for cataloguing library materials for practitioners and students who are in less complicated library and bibliographic environments. It is intended for users who do not require extensive detail, but prefer a summary of AACR2 practice.
  • Future Libraries: Dreams, Madness, and Reality(with Walt Crawford) ALA Editions ISBN 0838906477 - co-written with Walt Crawford, Gorman argues that libraries can and should welcome advanced technologies while preserving their traditional role as service-oriented repositories of organised information and knowledge. He states that virtual libraries will destroy the impact libraries have on society, and as a result proposes what he calls a "human-oriented" approach to technology. A review in the Journal of the American Society for Information Science and Technology stated "As the chapters unfold, a wealth of important information and observations about digital technology is presented, particularly the failure of computers to correlate with the often hyperbolic gush of promise for a more economical, streamlined,and utilitarian workplace.", while another reviewer argued that some of the points from the book are ludicrous and suggests that the impact of technological advancements and the longevity of printed works has been exaggerated and instead could lead to a “dangerous complacency” within the profession.
  • Our Singular Strengths: Meditations for Librarians (1997) ALA Editions ISBN 0838907245 - this book, precursor to Our Own Selves, is a collection of 144 meditations with a short essay and resolution.
  • Technical Services Today and Tomorrow (1998) Greenwood Press; 2nd revised edition ISBN 1563085901 - This book discusses the issues surrounding technology and libraries, centred on the technical services in libraries with views on its future. The four main sections deal with acquisition, bibliographic control, automation and administration. It aims to provide an overview of the way in which technical services are building on the foundations of past work to overcome the new challenges of the present, and aims to remind readers of the technical core of librarians' activities. Like many of Gorman's other books, this text is primarily intended as an academic textbook, and Philip Hider in Library Management wrote that “this book would serve as a primer for library school students“.
  • Our Enduring Values: Librarianship in the 21st Century (2000) ALA Editions ISBN 0838907856 -in this work, Gorman attempts to define the role of both library and librarians, discussing the core values of the profession. Gorman proposes eight values of librarianship which he believes are the principles which underpin the profession and, in turn, underpin democracy. The books considers the role of the library today, librarianship in the 21st Century, what patrons and communities want from their libraries, the effects of new and changing technology on libraries, and ways to maintain the core values of librarianship into the future. Some professionals have criticised the book for some of the personal opinions on which Gorman focuses, and questioned its suitability as an academic textbook for the library and information sector.
  • The Enduring Library: Technology, Tradition, and the Quest for Balance(2003) ALA Editions ISBN 0838908464 - This book discusses the issues surrounding traditional library services and the ideas of technology dominance. Gorman's argument is that to comprehend the influence of technology on society and libraries, we need to understand the history and development of technology. He claims that libraries have forever been affected by technology, suggesting we are in a significant point in the development and evolution of libraries. The book surveys the digital world and the internet, library work and the future of libraries, with special focus on reference and cataloguing. It also examines the impact of modern living on information overload and stress
  • Our Own Selves: More Meditations for Librarians (2005) ALA Editions ISBN 0838908969 - 100 essays focusing on the issues central to the library profession. This is a follow up to Gorman’s earlier work, Our Singular Strengths (1997).

Awards

  • Margaret Mann Citation (1979)
  • Melvil Dewey
    Melvil Dewey
    Melville Louis Kossuth Dewey was an American librarian and educator, inventor of the Dewey Decimal system of library classification, and a founder of the Lake Placid Club....

     Medal (1992)
  • Blackwell's Scholarship Award (1997)
  • California Library Association/Access, Collections, Technical Services Section Award of Achievement (1999)
  • Highsmith Award (2001)
  • Honorary Doctorate, Thames Valley University
    Thames Valley University
    The University of West London is a public university based in London, United Kingdom, with campuses in Ealing and Brentford, London, and Reading, Berkshire....

    (2008)
  • Haycock Award (2010)

Memberships

  • ALA Council 1991-1995, 2002–2006
  • ALA Executive Board until 2007
  • Fellow of the Library Association 1979
  • Honorary Fellow of CILIP 2005

External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
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