Come for the Books, Stay for the Power Tools; The New York Times, June 27, 2026

 

Sarah Diamond

Illustrations by Gabrielle Lamontagne, 

 The New York Times; Come for the Books, Stay for the Power Tools

"As of 2024, there were more than 2,000 examples of places around the world where patrons have access to objects that might otherwise sit unused in a closet, garage or on a store shelf.

The idea has roots stretching back to World War II-era tool-lending libraries. But researchers say the movement gained momentum after the Great Recession in 2008, when many Americans began questioning whether they needed to own items they used only occasionally. “It’s a reclamation of the commons,” said Shannon Mattern, an author and former professor who studies libraries and public infrastructure."

Archiving with AI; Library Journal, June 8, 2026

 Matt Enis, Library Journal; Archiving with AI

"AI companies are offering some libraries funding for digitization projects, but archives and special collections are working through how to manage projects responsibly

“Imagine a world where you know things but cannot say where you learned them,” begins “Memory Without Origin,” a paper published in April by University of Virginia (UVA) Dean of Libraries and University Librarian Leo S. Lo. This isn’t a hypothetical question, Lo notes, it’s a predictable consequence if libraries allow generative artificial intelligence (AI) to ingest archival materials as training data without requiring provenance conditions. And libraries, which could always use funding for projects involving digitization, special collections, and archives, are being approached by AI companies with deep pockets.

“They’ve been approaching a lot of larger research libraries, including Oxford and many more,” Lo tells LJ. (Oxford’s Bodleian Libraries began a digitization pilot project funded by ChatGPT maker OpenAI last year.) “Usually the offer is: they will pay you to digitize materials—which we want, because we want to make them more accessible—and in return, depending on the deal…they would like to have the data to train their AI models.”

These partnerships can benefit both parties, but for libraries, the consequences of getting these arrangements wrong “are more permanent than anything the profession has previously encountered,” Lo writes. “Once archival materials are absorbed into foundation model weights, no subsequent institutional action can remove them from the model.” If proper care isn’t taken, that information becomes unmoored from its former context within an archive."

Lost memoir of Hiroshima survivor found after decades in US archive; The Guardian, June 22, 2026

Dalya Alberge, The Guardian; Lost memoir of Hiroshima survivor found after decades in US archive

[Kip Currier: This is another testament to the vital roles and responsibilities of information professionals around the globe who preserve precious archival artifacts, like the late Kiyoshi Tanimoto's Hiroshima 8:15 memoir. The memoir was identified in Yale University's Beinecke Rare Book & Manuscript Library. Tanimoto's poignant work gives a first-hand account in the aftermath of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima, Japan in 1945. Penguin Random House will publish this "lost memoir" on August 4, 2026. 

Other recent archival finds include: 

• a draft of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s "I Have A Dream" speech discovered in papers housed at the Virginia Theological Seminary's Bishop Payne Library, and

• a 44-page notebook in the National Library of France containing "seven previously unknown compositions" for flute and harp by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart.]

"The memoir of a man who survived the horrors of Hiroshima is to be published for the first time this summer after its discovery in a US archive.

The 230-page memoir was written almost 80 years ago by Kiyoshi Tanimoto, who witnessed the city’s destruction after the atomic bomb was dropped in 1945. He will now be portrayed in a feature film by Takehiro Hira, whose acclaimed roles include the detective in the Netflix Japanese-British drama Giri/Haji. Pre-production begins in November, ahead of the shoot in February 2027...

The memoir was found in the Beinecke rare book and manuscript library at Yale in New Haven, Connecticut, among the papers of John Hersey, the American Pulitzer prize-winning reporter who died in 1993."

A bonanza for fans of the natural world: the digital library sharing 64m pages of scientific knowledge with everyone; The Guardian, June 18, 2026

Donna Ferguson, The Guardian; A bonanza for fans of the natural world: the digital library sharing 64m pages of scientific knowledge with everyone

"Over the past 20 years, more than 64m pages have been made freely available through the Biodiversity Heritage Library (BHL) – a digital treasure trove for fans of the natural world. More than 680 museums, universities, libraries and scientific institutions from China, Singapore, Australia and New Zealand to Europe, Africa, Mexico, Canada and the US, have contributed to the library.

This week, a report from Royal Botanic Gardens (RBG), Kew revealed the crucial role digitisation is playing in “transforming our ability to understand and respond to the climate and biodiversity crises”, but it was the creation of the BHL 20 years ago that first demonstrated how bringing centuries of scientific knowledge online can unlock transformative discoveries and insights about the natural world.

David Iggulden, who chairs the BHL executive committee alongside his job as head of data and digital, library and archives at RBG Kew, describes the library as an invaluable and “absolutely essential” resource for scientists in the field. But it is also used by scientific researchers, environmental historians, educators, art historians, artists, citizen scientists and members of the public who – like Iggulden – simply enjoy browsing its contents on a rainy weekend.

“I just get caught up in it sometimes, looking at the various collections,” he says. “I think it’s amazing that we can explore such a vast array of different collections from very different institutions.”

As well as published biodiversity literature and journals, there are letters, illustrations, climate records, field diaries, ecosystem profiles, distribution records and manuscripts containing the original collecting stories of a particular species or detailing voyages of discovery."

Federal court hears oral arguments in appeal of Arkansas’ library obscenity law; Arkansas Advocate, June 11, 2026

 TESS VRBIN, Arkansas Advocate; Federal court hears oral arguments in appeal of Arkansas’ library obscenity law

"A federal appeals court heard arguments Thursday to uphold the injunction of a 2023 Arkansas law governing challenges to library content, while Arkansas’ solicitor general said the plaintiffs’ allegations were “too speculative.”

The three-judge panel from the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in St. Louis will rule on whether two sections of Act 372 of 2023 can go into effect. A district judge blocked the provisions in 2024, and the state appealed the ruling in 2025.

The two challenged sections would create criminal liability for librarians who distribute content that some consider “obscene” or “harmful to minors,” and give city and county governing bodies the final say over library content.

The 18 plaintiffs in the case include libraries, bookstores, advocacy groups and individual library patrons. The defendants are Arkansas’ 28 prosecuting attorneys, Crawford County and its county judge, Chris Keith.

Crawford County lost another federal lawsuit in 2024 after three parents claimed the county library violated the First Amendment by moving LGBTQ+ children’s books into separate “social sections” that only adults could access."

Book Surfaces 120 Years After a San Francisco Library Lost Almost Everything; The New York Times, June 1, 2026

 Adeel Hassan, The New York Times; Book Surfaces 120 Years After a San Francisco Library Lost Almost Everything;

"Randall Tarpey-Schwed, a book collector and library member, found the book on a website that deals in, among other things, rare books and collectibles. How it reached that previous owner is unknown.

Mr. Tarpey-Schwed said he was curious whether any books had survived the 1906 earthquake and fires, by virtue of having been checked out.

“There was no place to return the book, at least for a while, or to reapply Gertrude Stein’s famous quote, there was no ‘there there’ to return the book to,” he said.

“The book is not worth much monetarily,” Mr. Tarpey-Schwed said. “It is, after all, a soot-stained book with a lot of old library stamps. But as a survivor, it is priceless, and I knew immediately I wanted to return it to the library.”

The book’s author, Bret Harte, might have been a library member, Mr. Cooper said. Many writers and artists have been members, he said, but full membership records from before the earthquake are gone."

Americans Want to Read. Give Them Books.; The New York Times, May 31, 2026

Brian Bannon, The New York Times; Americans Want to Read. Give Them Books.

"More New Yorkers are borrowing books from the New York Public Library today than 15 years ago; borrowing is up 27 percent since 2010. And yet America is facing a book-reading crisis...

Libraries themselves were throwing up barriers to reading...

The reading crisis is real. But we don’t need new inventions to build a reading city. Exempt books from sales taxes the way we exempt prescription medicine. Invest in library collections and reduce wait lists for books. Open nonprofit and hybrid bookstoreswhen the market alone cannot sustain them. Build on the models that already work: reading in laundromats, libraries in transit systems, books in barbershops, classrooms, homes and pediatric offices."

A Seat at the Table: Reflections from eight ALA trailblazers; American Libraries, May 1, 2026

 Anne Ford , American Libraries; A Seat at the Table: Reflections from eight ALA trailblazers

"For 150 years, the American Library Association (ALA) has shaped the landscape of libraries and the profession itself—but its leadership has often reflected the racial and gender biases of society at large. For this special anniversary issue, American Libraries spoke with eight barrier-busting Association leaders about their struggles, triumphs, breakdowns, and breakthroughs. The stories and lessons they share reveal how diversity fuels and transforms the power of libraries everywhere."

‘Living library’: inside the marine biobanks racing to protect ocean species from extinction; The Guardian, May 4, 2026

 Stephanie Convery and Petra Stock, The Guardian; ‘Living library’: inside the marine biobanks racing to protect ocean species from extinction

"These fridges are part of what the university calls its “living library”: a biobank, or long-term storage for at-risk marine life forms. Biobanks act as insurance policies against species extinction, and as research hubs for scientists studying species genetics, growth and resilience in the age of environmental crisis."

Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library is not ‘progress’ for everyone in Medora; North Dakota Monitor, April 30, 2026

JACK ZALESKI, NORTH DAKOTA MONITOR; THEODORE ROOSEVELT PRESIDENTIAL LIBRARY IS NOT ‘PROGRESS’ FOR EVERYONE IN MEDORA

[Kip Currier: This is a thought-provoking article about the Theodore Rosevelt Presidential Library that will open its doors in Medora, North Dakota on America's July 4th 250th anniversary. In the 1990's, on a driving trip from Pennsylvania to California by way of the Interstate 94 northerly route I had never traveled, I visited this area set amid the ruggedly beautiful Theodore Roosevelt National Park. After a day of sightseeing in the park, I also attended the charming outdoors-staged Medora Musical show, mentioned in the piece. I vividly recall seeing a pronghorn antelope calmly walking among the sagebrush not far from the open amphitheater at sunset's twilight as the actors sang and danced on the stage. Medora was a sleepy high plains town then that now appears both excited and nervous about the changes a presidential library are likely to bring for the community and surrounding area.

The author of this article makes an important point about the inherent tensions between "progress" and historical preservation, the ways of life that are changed when communities grow and adapt in ways that benefit some and harm or upset others. I recall visiting Moab, Utah, the doorway to Arches and Canyonlands National Parks in 1988 when it was a faded mining town, whose uranium employing-mine had closed in 1984, displacing 25% of the population. Locals in 1988 told me the town had been talking with some firms about how to raise the profile of the town and make it a premiere tourism destination. Some years later, I again visited Moab and was stunned to see how it had changed into a "mountain bike red rock-riding" community with a vibe and look like Aspen or Vail. Yes, progress had occurred. But what had also been lost when the off-the-beaten-path Moab of the 1980's that I had experienced became the well-trodded now-chic Moab of the 1990's? Who had been displaced? What history and voices had been paved over or silenced?

I can't help but think, too, that the debate about "progress" and "ways of life that are being lost or changed" in Medora, North Dakota has resonance for the debates and changes going on right now about AI's "promise and peril" impacts on our communities and world. Yes, there's a sense of excitement about AI by some. But there's also a palpable atmosphere of concern, uncertainty, and even anger among others about these new technologies. And the data captures this polarized AI mood in the U.S., as borne out by Pew Research Center findings.

• Who will benefit from AI?
• Who won't?
• What will be gained from AI and what will be lost?
• Whose voices are we not listening to -- or perhaps even acknowledging -- and need to hear? 
• In what ways will AI "progress" impact both the economic and geographic environments, as in the Medora, North Dakota region?
• What AI structures and safeguards do we need to put into place to provide more balance of stakeholder interests?
• How will AI impact our minds, souls, and physical well-being, in positive and negative ways?

In the vein of this opinion piece about the T.R. Presidential Library, AI is not going to bring "progress" for everyone. So what are we going to do -- or not do -- about that as individuals and societies?

The largest chapter in my Ethics, Information, and Technology book (2025), published by Bloomsbury, is the AI chapter. The book examines a number of thorny AI case studies (e.g. AI used for mental health treatment purposes as well as AI-leveraged data employed by gambling companies), tackles "hot AI ethics topics" like AI and copyright law and the roles of AI and robotics for military purposes, and presents many questions for further consideration and discussion. It also identifies a range of stakeholder perspectives and approaches to these new "disruptive technologies".]

[Excerpt]

"The cheerleading for the Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library at Medora, N.D., has overwhelmed the muted, but passionate concerns and objections among long-time Badlands residents. Few want to be seen as being against the library and the progress it promises for North Dakota’s premier tourist destination, but their definition of “progress” is not the same as the project’s well-funded advocates. A recent column in a local weekly newspaper reveals the depth of their sense of loss...

That being said, an April 9 column in the Golden Valley News of Beach, N.D., revealed a sense of sadness and loss that has not been sufficiently acknowledged in the hoopla since the library was proposed. Carol Tescher Obrigewitch is no stranger to Medora. She is a member of a ranching and rodeo clan with deep roots in the Badlands. 

The name Tescher is synonymous with the ranching heritage of Little Missouri River country. Her weekly “Merrily Along” is a delightful mix of family, history, and astute and informed observations. So when her column headlined “Progress?” was published, she was writing from the heart about the changes wrought by the library. She’s not happy, and her unhappiness is shared by a lot of long-time Medora citizens who choose not to speak out.

Also, it has not gone unnoticed that of the 18 listed members of the Library Foundation Board of Trustees, only four have roots or residences in North Dakota and only one of the four lives in western North Dakota. 

Here are representative excerpts from Tescher Obrigewitch’s column:

“Medora is definitely not historic anymore. The powers that be have totally removed or rebuilt anything that was historic…

…“In this little town, they have installed roundabouts and made major changes to streets and walkways. They have built hotels, torn down historic places that were there before TR ever thought about coming west…

“…I had to go by the old Custer Trail Ranch, which they tore down. I just closed my eyes. It hurt my heart.

“I believe in preserving history so future generations understand how people once lived.

“…but this ‘progress’ thing has gotten out of hand.”

The columnist’s candor and hurt won’t stop or alter the character of the mega-change under way in Medora. That horse is out of the barn, and (as she says) the “powers that be,” local and otherwise, are too deeply invested to rein it in."