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Re: New Yorker Article



I thought it was interesting how similar the article you talked about was to
the one I read in library school and wondered if it was by the same author.
Was the author of the article by chance Nicholson Barker or Baker, or
something like that? He wrote an article I had to read in library school
about how appalling it was that libraries were throwing away card catalogs
and old, out of date books. I don't know what year it was published, but it
seems like it was in The New Yorker. He did not seem to take into account
the fact that libraries throw the books out when they are no longer of any
use to the patrons because they are out of date, no longer fit into the
collection, or sometimes just falling apart. He didn't seem to care that
card catalogs take up so much space in the library, space that could be used
to put more books, magazines, etc.

Barbara M. Allen, M.L.S.
O.J. Cloughly Alumni Library
St. Louis College of Pharmacy
4588 Parkview Place
St. Louis, MO 63110
Voice: +1 314-367-8700, ext. 1001
Fax:    +1 314-367-2784
Email:  ballen@stlcop.edu


-----Original Message-----
From: Daniel Sokolow [mailto:daniel_sokolow@MCGRAW-HILL.COM]
Sent: 19 July, 2000 3:59 PM
To: ARCHIVES@LISTSERV.MUOHIO.EDU
Subject: New Yorker Article


From: Daniel Sokolow@MCGRAW-HILL on 07/19/2000 04:59 PM


To:   archives@listserv.muohio.edu
cc:
Subject:  New Yorker Article

It looks like no one else has mentioned this, but I just finished a rather
long
article in the July 24 New Yorker about an author's attempt to save actual
copies of old newspapers that are being tossed out (it's not available
online
that I could see, or I'd add the URL).  There are several interesting
assertions
in the article, including one that newspapers, bound and stored properly,
will
not degrade to the degree commonly accepted in the library world.

I've seen for myself how clippings deteriorate quickly - most of us have had
that experience where you open the folder and flakes start to fall out;  my
assumption has always been that what holds true for clippings would hold for
the
full volumes, no matter what you do to them.  I guess I'm a little surprised
to
see that challenged, and wondered what others thought about it.

Some of his other assertions are understandable - there's a comparative set
of
pictures measuring the microfilm against the original, and the original is
much
better than the MF.  He also points out that the MF done on many newspapers
was
pretty bad, and people went ahead and tossed their originals without making
sure
the MF was OK, or that they had captured all of the issues.

While I agree with his premise that everything should be saved (assuming
it's in
reasonable shape), I think he's kind of flippant about the way libraries go
about saving space.  He seems to feel that it's very easy to go ahead and
build/rent/buy more space, but most of the libraries I know of are trying to
squeeze a lot more than newspaper into some small accomodations.  Most of us
are
trying to store book, magazine, newspaper, microform, archives, and
electronic
materials in the space we're alloted, which is usually too small to begin
with.

The only other comment I have is that he seemed somewhat dilletantish - he's
found his crusade and can't understand why the rest of us aren't as
horrified
(and motivated) as he is.  He talks about the aesthetic pleasure of
newspaper
vs. microfilm, and while I agree that reading MF can make you dizzy, most of
us
have to do our jobs without the luxury of aesthetics.  I'm impressed by his
dedication, but I kinda think he's made more of it than perhaps necessary.

DS


Daniel Sokolow
Corporate Archivist
The McGraw-Hill Companies
1221 Avenue of the Americas
New York, NY 10020
daniel_sokolow@mcgraw-hill.com

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