Libraries, the Internet and Filtering
Libraries continue to lead the effort to close the digital divide in the United States, working to ensure that all people have access to the resource that has come to dominate information transfer in our world: the Internet.
Congress recognized libraries’ essential role in the Telecommunications Act of 1996, which designated public libraries as universal service providers for online information. Now, virtually all public libraries are on line, and libraries have expanded even further their role as one of America's great democratic institutions, providing access to books and other resources to people of all ages and backgrounds regardless of their ability to pay. Research shows that for people without Internet access at home, school or work, public libraries are the number one point of access (Falling Through the Net, National Telecommunications and Information Administration, 2000).
ALA strongly believes that laws pertaining to illegal materials and activity on the Internet should be enforced, but the Association does not endorse the use of filtering technology in public libraries. Filtering technology is known to block legal material that library users may find valuable and useful for their jobs, studies, health, and other needs. Despite the 2003 U.S. Supreme Court ruling on the Children’s Internet Protection Act (CIPA), which permits the government to require libraries that receive certain kinds of federal funding to install filters, ALA policy is unchanged: ALA does not recommend the use in libraries of filtering technology that blocks constitutionally protected information.
Studies by the National Research Council, the U.S. Children's Online Protection Act Commission, and the Kaiser Family Foundation, among others, have documented that fact that filters fail to block many sites banned under CIPA while still blocking hundreds of thousands of perfectly legal, useful sites. Expert witnesses representing both the plaintiffs and the government in the CIPA case corroborated these findings. The Kaiser Family Foundation study also found that filters set above the lowest settings block many more legal sites but only a few more sites banned by CIPA. ALA therefore urges libraries that choose to install filters to set their filters at the least restrictive level in order to minimize the blocking of Constitutionally protected speech. The Association also recommends that all libraries educate both staff and the general public on this issue.
Finally, ALA believes that filters do not protect children, education does. The National Research Council made an apt comparison in its 2002 report, Youth, Pornography, and the Internet: "Swimming pools can be dangerous for children. To protect them, one can install locks, put up fences, and deploy pool alarms. All these measures are helpful, but by far the most important thing that one can do for one's children is to teach them to swim."
The more children and parents know about the Internet and Internet safety, the Council said, the better equipped they will be to protect themselves and enjoy their time on line. Libraries have a long tradition of providing quality service to children and adults in a safe place, and they continue to do so. Parents and children should still exercise common sense in the library, as they do in any public place.
The Association strongly encourages local libraries to adopt policies and practices that govern Internet use in the same way they adopt other policies to ensure a positive library experience. The Association takes an active role in educating the public about how to use the Internet and encourages local libraries to play a leadership role in their communities. Almost all libraries offering Internet service have such policies and programs.
Role of the American Library Association
The mission of the American Library Association (ALA) is to promote the highest quality library and information services. This includes recommending model policies for local libraries to use in developing their own policies and procedures. ALA policies, such as the Library Bill of Rights adopted in 1940, are intended to protect the rights of library users to read and receive information as defined by the United States Constitution and courts.
Fact: Local libraries are responsible for adopting their own operating policies and procedures.
Fact: The association does not endorse the use of filtering technology in public institutions, such as libraries, because it blocks legal information to which users are entitled under the Constitution.
How librarians manage the Internet
Librarians have developed and continue to develop Internet management techniques with the goal of ensuring public access to information and a positive online experience for people of all ages. Some libraries use filters on some computer terminals, generally in children's areas.
Some libraries are experimenting with special library cards with computer chips that allow individual library users to control Internet access for themselves and their children. Unlike filters intended for use in the home, this technology can cost many thousands of dollars and must be integrated into other library computer systems. Other considerations for libraries are ease of maintenance, protecting library user privacy, respecting First Amendment rights and providing a choice for library users.
Common strategies for managing Internet use include:
- Codes of conduct that define appropriate use of library computers and the Internet (e.g., no participation in illegal activities).
- Internet training classes for children and parents to teach them techniques, including how to search effectively, to ensure a positive online experience.
- Links to preselected sites such as the ALA's Great Web Sites for Kids and search engines specially designed for children such as KidsClick! or AOL's AOL@School.
- Privacy screens on workstations.
- Time limits and other rules for computer use in keeping with the library's mission statement and customer service practices.
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