Abstract #6

Block, M. (2003). Dealing with digital. Library Journal 128(12). Accessed April 12, 2005 from Library Lit & Inf Full Text.

Examines the roles and positions of government documents librarians at two midwestern unversities. Emphasis was placed on their unique service orientation as well as their unique and wide-ranging collections. These librarians not only have their public service duties (reporting not only to their home institution but in a major sense to the government at large) but also their academic and collection development duties. For these librarians, digitization will have both positive and negative consequences. It is positive that citizens will have greater access than before (theoretically), but questions still remain as to who will store all these digital files and how they can be searched. "The more power the government has, the more essential it is that it be held accountable for its actions. Information is the sunlight that exposes slimy crawling things like incompetence and corruption and sends them running for cover. And, most importantly, the mission of depository librarians is to provide that sun."