Wednesday, October 12, 2005
Library ethics
I had to read a bunch of Codes of Ethics from various professional organization in the library and information fields. Then I had to formulate an opinion:
The statements of codes and ethics from library and other professional organizations show the basic desire of these groups to “do good,” or at least, “do no harm.” To the professional, this is a call to action. This says to me, as a librarian, that I have a duty to the public to provide them with information. With these rules the public will also know that we are doing our best to provide them with the best service. I particularly appreciate the fact that they are revised on a regular basis to keep current.
The flaw in these documents is that the idea of “Moral” and “good” can be subjective. Even hate-filled books are included in library collections, if only to show the moral and social climate of certain time periods. Therefore, who is to say what is good for the public or not?
Some of them (particularly the ACM code of ethics) read a bit like religious dogma. But, I can see that their intent is to be as clear as possible. These documents are not all bad since they do provide the professional with an outline to follow and provide the public with an idea of what they can hope to expect.
The statements of codes and ethics from library and other professional organizations show the basic desire of these groups to “do good,” or at least, “do no harm.” To the professional, this is a call to action. This says to me, as a librarian, that I have a duty to the public to provide them with information. With these rules the public will also know that we are doing our best to provide them with the best service. I particularly appreciate the fact that they are revised on a regular basis to keep current.
The flaw in these documents is that the idea of “Moral” and “good” can be subjective. Even hate-filled books are included in library collections, if only to show the moral and social climate of certain time periods. Therefore, who is to say what is good for the public or not?
Some of them (particularly the ACM code of ethics) read a bit like religious dogma. But, I can see that their intent is to be as clear as possible. These documents are not all bad since they do provide the professional with an outline to follow and provide the public with an idea of what they can hope to expect.
# posted by Doloho @ 7:42 AM 
