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Deadline |
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December 2006
The Best of 2006
Linda Macdonald, The Guardian Paul Pedley, Economist Intelligence Unit Katharine Shopflin, ITN Declan Kelly, AUKML Treasurer Paul Fairclough, Time Out Margaret Katny, BBC
End of the year reviews are usually an excuse to generate copy with the minimum of effort, and thus hugely popular among writers of every stripe. This year has been notable for the number of AUKML members in print but should you have missed any, Deadline is delighted to present you here with a recap: In July, Kim Fletcher, a commentator on Media Guardian, wrote about
the demise of
newspaper libraries . While accurate
regarding the closing down of the grand old cuttings morgues, Fletcher forgot to pick up
the phone ask a question or two about what exactly news librarians are doing now.
Guardian researcher, Alan Power
soon put him right with this response:
. Alan also wrote a piece for the
August 25 edition of Cilip Update .
Moving on, December saw Sara Margets, head of the Financial Times' library and information service, revealing a lifelong love of worms in an FT gardening feature And finally, we must congratulate former Telegraph Chief Librarian, Kate Fassett, on her success in becoming the paper's Crossword editor. Apparently some the library's users were a little disappointed:
AUKML celebrated its 20th anniversary amid the ephemera of more than a century of
newspaper publishing at the Guardian's Newsroom in London's fashionable East End.
Attending were many luminaries of AUKML past, pictured by
Linda MacDonald
here enjoying the hospitality on offer. The sponsorship of Lexis Nexis saw to it that
this was not inconsiderable - as
well as `some' wine and beer, 56 bottles of fizz were chugged, lubricating proceedings
considerably. Nearby Al's Bar took the full force of the after hours crowd, with the
party still goig strong when Deadline's sources made their excuses and left at around
2.30am. A recent report for internet journal First Monday has once again propelled the Wikipedia debate - Wikibate? - into the headlines of the Information world. Though not nearly as favourable as the fabled Nature piece from earlier this year, the research suggests that the Wiki concept is capable of producing surprisingly reliable results given it's seeming vulnerability to all kinds of mischief, prankology, and downright lies. Sadly the report sheds no light on whether invented cheeses continue to be the bugbear of the official Wikipedia editors - a story Deadline always felt was full of holes anyway.
It's a hoary old chestnut so what better time of year to remind ourselves of the
obsession librarians have with their image (clue: accountancy stopped being dull not
when accountants began wearing Prada but when they started earning six figure salaries)
- an interest outstripped only by that of certain non-librarians such as Alex Aikens,
Westminster Council's head of communications. Mr Aikens recently told a public libraries
conference that "photogenic" staff would help market services as would emphasising the
range of "racy books" on offer. Quite apart from the fact that the term "racy books"
hasn't been heard since Sid James passed away, his comments caused quite a stir. The
response from many librarians failed to take into account that Mr Aikens, having served
as a press officer for William Hague, is all too familiar with insurmountable image
problems and well versed in the great changes to be wrought from, say, the simple
addition of a "funky" baseball cap to chinos and button-down shirt. And Mr Aikens is no
stranger to glamour himself. Readers of the Daily Record may recall that back in 1998
the paper reported that he, then still an aide to William Hague, was seen leaving a
Commons bar "hand in hand" with topless model Jo Guest after what the paper described as
"a 12- hour tour of (the Commons') many watering holes". Thank goodness Conservative
sources were able to set the Record straight, informing the paper that it was simply "a
bit of harmless fun".
Given his brush with `glamour', maybe what Mr Aikens had in mind was more along the
lines of the Texas Library Association's recent airing of it's, um, "special
collections". In a move that must have had movie execs dreaming of a Lone Star Calendar
Girls, eighteen of the state's finest man-librarian specimens stripped off for a
calendar to raise money for libraries ravaged by hurricane Katrina. While Deadline
applauds the cause, we're frankly alarmed by TLA spokeswoman Brenda Thompson's assertion
that it has left the association's 8000 members "superexcited". If you really, really
must you can see it here.
Perhaps, though, anyone feeling a little too image conscious could do worse than remind
themselves why they got into the business in the first place. J.R. Moehringer's elegiac
account of the last working day of Mississippi librarian Ronnie Wise is a warm,
unsentimental tribute to a man who fits so many of the negative librarian stereotypes
but whose work has made a real difference to a lot of people. Read the
story
or
register.
CAN YOU REMEMBER WHEN YOU FIRST USED THE INTERNET? HOW OFTEN DO YOU GO ONLINE? WHICH SEARCH ENGINE DO YOU USUALLY USE? CAN YOU NAME ANY OTHER SEARCH ENGINES? NOW THAT YOU CAN SEARCH THE INTERNET YOURSELF, DO YOU THINK THERE IS STILL A ROLE FOR LIBRARIANS/INFORMATION PROFESSIONALS? WHAT ARE YOUR THREE FAVOURITE SITES AT THE MOMENT? ARE THERE ANY SITES THAT YOU FIND REALLY IRRITATING? HAVE YOU EVEN BEEN SO BORED THAT YOU'VE GOOGLED YOURSELF? DO YOU STILL USE OLD MEDIA? WHAT ONE CHANGE WOULD YOU MAKE TO IMPROVE YOUR EXPERIENCE OF THE INTERNET? WHAT HAS BEEN YOUR MOST PLEASURABLE EXPERIENCE WHILST SEARCHING ONLINE?
Conference Review The story began at the information party in London in December 2005 when Hazel Hall & Katharine Schopflin got talking about the forthcoming AUKML conference. Hazel, who is also of my lecturers at Napier University, emailed me the following March to see if I'd be interested in helping out at the conference. As well as saying she thought I'd enjoy it and I'd make some good contacts, she added I may also have the opportunity to discuss my dissertation research with a great sample audience - on that point I was sold! The icing on the cake was that the conference was going to be held in the Point. When I first moved to Edinburgh I'd actually lived around the corner from it, but as a student it was out of bounds to my new budgeted lifestyle. I was rather excited to finally have the opportunity to explore it as a guest. When I arrived at the hotel on Friday, after a few quick introductions, I was quickly put to work, helping to organise the conference welcome packs. It was then that I also got to meet Holly Benson, my accomplice for the weekend (and also a student). In the afternoon everyone set off on the Edinburgh Library tours. I'd been lucky enough to have had a tour of the National Library of Scotland before, so I opted for the tour of the Scottish Parliamentary Information Centre and Dewar Room. We got to see the personal collection of the late First Minister Donald Dewar. It was interesting, but I'm sure those that were there will agree with me that the table in the middle of room was like nothing ever seen before. Well worth a look if you ever get the chance. Holly and I were unable to attend the evening's entertainment at the Museum of Scotland, but we certainly created our own entertainment. (Note: This is where the `in the City' part of the title comes from). I think we probably broke a few records with the amount of miles we traveled and bars we explored! To end the night we responded to a voicemail from someone back at the hotel demanding we return to the hotel bar as the wine was flowing. Saturday morning was an early one and began with registration and coffee (much required for those that were out the night before). The first thing to do was admire the spectacular views over Edinburgh from the Penthouse Suite of the conference centre. Major brownie points to whoever chose the location for the conference, as a view like that will be very hard to beat in future. The main conference theme was `The 21st Century Information Professional'. The day's proceedings were opened by Professor Charles Oppenheim, Loughborough University. First up was Ian Watson, Newsquest (Herald and Evening Times) with an insight into adding value to the business through dependency to disintermediation to integration. Torin Douglas, BBC, followed with an interesting look at Digital overload in the media. Cate Newton, National Library of Scotland, provided details on the Newsplan2000 project. Candy Jannetta, Essencial Coaching, discussed Marketing of information services. A topic very close to my heart (well my dissertation anyway) so I paid great attention. Lunch provided an opportunity to enjoy a bite to eat and a chance to meet a few more new faces. The clear blue skies and the sun shining across the city provided a perfect setting. After lunch Brian Kelly, UKOLN gave a talk on Web 2.0. This was something I'd heard about but never had explained to me, so it was great to finally understand. Heather Powell, BBC, followed with media asset management and research in the digital TV age. Martin Belam, Currybet.net gave us an insight into smarter searching on the internet. Yet another topic that was very useful for my dissertation. The afternoon was finished off by Catherine Dhanjal, Special Cuts, discussing the role of librarians in environmental scanning. The sun was setting over the Edinburgh as we all returned to the Penthouse Suite for the drinks reception. It was lovely to see everyone dressed up for a night out in the city. As I've been studying in Edinburgh for over 4 years, to the rest the conference delegates I was considered one of the `locals'. I turned out not to be such a local when I managed to get Holly and I lost on our way to the Atrium for the conference dinner. We found it eventually though and were delighted to find ourselves in yet another stunning location. An after dinner speech was provided by Alan Taylor, Literary Editor of the Sunday Herald. Then it was back to the Monboddo bar in the hotel for after-dinner drinks. On Sunday morning we took a rather wet stroll down the street for the discussion panel at New College, University of Edinburgh. The subject was `Using your media library experience'. I enjoyed hearing about the experiences of three ex-media librarians Kate Arnold, Peter Chapman and Frances Tait. A lunch of sandwiches and much needed soup (to warm us after our walk in the rain) ended the weekend's activities. I'd like to take this opportunity to thank AUKML for an amazing first insight into the life of the media librarian and especially for providing me with the opportunity to carry out a bit more dissertation research in such spectacular surroundings.
AUKML/ICLG Open Day Monday 13th November By Ruth Craven, Steven Duckworth, Annastacia Regan and Amy Williams, trainee librarians at The Guardian. On a cold and dreary morning, forty-four aspiring `information professionals' (not librarians, a word that seemed to be embargoed, despite the day being organised by the Association of UK Media Librarians and Industrial & Commercial Libraries Group) assembled in the basement of the Friends House, Euston to hear a diverse range of presentations on potential careers in information. Complimentary caffeine was gratefully received. We also enjoyed free notepads and pencils made from recycled plastic cups, although the leads of the pencils were quickly worn down and we had not thought to bring a pencil sharpener. The start of the presentations was delayed by technical difficulties, but in due course Professor Charles Oppenheim from Loughborough began with an anecdote about reference desks. Whilst his talk covered the basics of applying to postgraduate information courses, and how to ensure good feedback from library patrons (stroking them apparently does the trick), the most useful information was imparted during the questions and answer session. Topics raised included funding and the pros and cons of full or part time study; and perhaps this part of the talk best answered the concerns of his audience. A wider perspective was given by Laura Perrott of Sue Hill recruitment, who explained where information professionals fit into the world of business and finance, as well as offering advice on CV skills. Unfortunately, a spirited attempt at audience participation was doomed from the start, and the advice given was familiar to many of those present. The Wellcome Library tour was something of a misnomer, being neither in the library or a tour. It was unfortunate that the library was in the process of moving, so we didn't get to see it. Instead we had a talk about the vast library collections and saw a few random pieces from the archives. We were also misdirected by the receptionists, and anyone who's tried to cross Euston Road repeatedly at lunch time will realise the perils inherent therein. Incidentally, if you ever visit the Wellcome building, be sure to make use of both revolving doors. The alternative tour, of Friends House library, was a memorable one giving tremendous insights into the rich and occasionally turbulent history of the Quakers. The librarian showed remarkable trust in allowing us to handle centuries old material from their extensive archives, including the diary of a teenage Elizabeth Fry - who now appears on the back of English GBP5 notes. With nine speakers, the budget must have been stretched, and it showed at lunchtime. There is a mathematical study begging to be done on the ratio of cheese to pineapple in the buffet, and when it is published, we shall send a copy to the Quakers. Lunch was followed by Jill Halford, the only librarian at Charles Taylor & Co Limited, who expounded on the benefits of working solo in the private sector, but did not downplay the challenges it presented. She highlighted the variety of jobs available within the information sector with an eye catching presentation and a provided a glimpse of the human side to professional life - juggling children, career and working abroad. Wearing the same clothes as last year (check the photos on the website if you want proof), Richard Nelsson and Alan Power gave a tantalising taste of the glamorous world of newspapers. An overview of the responsibilities of Research and Information was followed by a day in the life of a researcher, dealing with deadlines and sometimes-impossible demands. Richard and Alan conveyed the importance of the Research and Information department in providing reliable fact-based news. Holding the relevant information qualification (and a thick skin) researchers have the expertise to find information quickly, and even occasionally have background research published alongside journalists' articles. Although demands on the library at the Guardian are changing rapidly, the talk highlighted that it is possible for `information professionals' to continue to be integral to the production of quality newspapers in the digital age. A flurry of questions followed, largely about wallcharts. Sarbjit Dhillon from Swets was next, and gave a clear, well presented talk on who Swets are and what they do. Her knowledge of subscription services and information resource management was extensive, although more relevant to established information professionals than prospective library students. After a brief coffee break, former Guardian trainee Mick Turner talked about the transition from working in a large team within an established company, to a smaller team in a new company, particularly discussing his experience in internet start-ups. He found greater opportunities in career progression were counterbalanced by less job security. Next up was Katharine Schopflin, the Chair of AUKML, talking about life at ITN. This talk was quite different in tone to the Guardian's, highlighting the media's general indifference to the work of information professionals, and the difficult nature of embarking on a career in televisual media whilst earning a decent wage. The need for a `thick skin' was emphasised once again. This talk also underlined a need for flexibility as new technology has dramatically altered working practices. Jennifer Smith from City University rounded off the day with a talk on working in law libraries. It was a positive introduction to the flexibility of libraries; as she had worked in both commercial practice-support libraries and academia. She also extolled the benefits of summer jobs to get a foot in the door, and pointed out that drinking too much alcohol at professional events might not be such a good idea in terms of career development. A hand out was provided, including a selection of places to look for further information, which was much appreciated by brains overwhelmed by the volume of information provided throughout the day. While the day spanned a range of career paths in information, there were some notable exceptions. Appreciating time constraints, it would have been nice to hear from people involved in galleries or museums, as well as someone from a public library. Overall this was an insightful day, and the mixture of different roles and experiences of fellow attendees when combined with the talks illustrated of the range of possible career paths available to information amateurs such as ourselves. Although we remain uncertain as to whether we wish to embark on a postgraduate qualification in information, we left armed with the knowledge of areas that might suit us - and those that wouldn't.
Enduring, Free, Dumb? Sandra Rehme, Time Out's library assistant, sees more newspapers in a week than you have hot dinners. Unless you're a restaurant critic. Here she wades through the detritus foisted on us by marketing execs and wonders where it will end. In 1926 the Rocky Mountain News resorted to free gasoline giveaways to attract more readers, eighty years on national newspapers lure readers with George Michael, cheese wallcharts and dinosaur stickers. The covermount has become the ubiquitous newspaper giveaway and an established promotional tool in newspaper publishing. Every year Britons save about GBP6.9 billion on freebies. Especially free CDs and DVDs supplied with weekend newspapers have proven to be hugely popular (mainly with Scots apparently). In the national Top Ten of favourite freebies the free CD/DVD comes fourth. Worryingly, free dental treatment only makes it number thirteen. The covermount first saw the light of day in the 1960s, when magazines with an eye on hip teens began placing flexidiscs on their covers. But in recent years the covermount has been treated with increasing suspicion and investigations have been launched in its power to increase a title's circulation figures. And while it seems the right CD or DVD can boost a newspaper's circulation by up to 20% or more, as in 2000, when the Independent's Oasis compilation increased its sales by 35%, they are also regarded as a mixed blessing. They are expensive to produce and can't create a loyal readership. Arch critics of the covermount like to point out that there was once a time when people bought newspapers for their editorial matter rather than their free `drinks coasters'. Since the appearance of the first CD giveaways there has also been much debate as to what extent free compilations devalue music and threaten the sales figures of record companies. When free DVD started replacing the CD in 2005 similar concerns were voiced, and it hasn't all been hot air from the copyright holders. In 2004, EMI withdrew its support for free newspaper compilations followed by Universal one year later. The decision was made after a decrease in Christmas sales of compilation CDs and the BARD's (British Association of Record Dealers) announcement that CD giveaways devalued music and enforced the popular notion that all music should be free. As it turns out, the much loved free CD is not as harmless as it seems - responsible for a decline in Scots' dental hygiene, the decrease in record companies' sales figures and a great danger to society's value system. Hadn't Comag thought of such dangers when they published their classic `Best Practice Guidelines for Covermounts' handbook? In it, they point out that "items such as replica guns or air guns could be deemed inappropriate" and strongly exhort publishers "not to use explosive or radioactive substances as covermount gifts". Still, readers seem happy with the less dramatic material currently on offer according to a survey published by Music Week a couple of years back. Carried out by NOP for one of the leading companies providing covermounts, it found that 78% of consumers kept hold of the covermount CDs. And of those who kept the CD, 89% claimed it would make no difference to their music-buying habits. Some even claimed free music compilations would introduce them to new music and encourage them to buy more CDs. Despite this upbeat message, some publishers had already begun to draw up plans for the day leading record companies would pull the plug. In 2005 the Guardian predicted that the withdrawal of support from leading record companies would put an end to the covermount, but that readers would be getting so used to the giveaways that they would demand something new. The free CD compilation has survived, but it has become noticeably sparse. The demand for novelty giveaways is still high, but ever more expensive? Not exactly, and it was the Guardian that led the way in a most unusual direction. Replacements for the free CD/DVD were neither free return flights to New York nor airguns or radioactive substances, but colourful stickers and wallcharts sporting cheeses, tomatoes, crops, pigs and goats. And they seem to be even more popular. Ebay is over-run not with free CD compilations but winter vegetable wallcharts. What does this tell us about contemporary culture? Does our preference for a poster of Horses of The British Isles over a (live) CD of Wet Wet Wet contradict the idea that we're a dumbed-down society? I don't know. But if we can believe the surveys, in the future a lot of people might have more wallcharts on their walls than healthy teeth in their mouths.
Dig, by C.R. Corwin When Gordon Sweet, professor of garbology at Hannawa College, turns up on the obits page, Dolly Maddison Sprowls, a fellow college beatnik back in the '50s and long-time librarian at the Hannawa Herald-Union, is determined to find his killer. Is his death connected to illegal dumping at the local tip? Jealousy over Gordon's close relationship with his graduate assistant? A campus murder in 1957? Or a 40-year argument over Jack Kerouac's burger of choice? Everyone is a suspect as the Morgue Mama sets about investigating. Maddy is definitely old school; she shuns computers, preferring to root through the cuttings files stashed in her basement, and her editor is waiting for an excuse to pension her off. Phrases like "Good gravy!" and "Heavens to Betsy!" rapidly wear thin, but it's hard not to like her, particularly when she's intimidating or bribing journalists. She's a throwback to a former age, but it feels authentic; when a college reporter describes Maddy as a "desk-bound gnome who watches over the morgue, where the stories real reporters write are filed away", you get the feeling the author has some personal experience of newspaper life. The action moves between the Fifties and present day with ease, the story rolls along at a reasonable pace and, although there are a few unnecessary subplots, the complexity of it will keep you guessing till the final chapter. Katy Heslop
How you know you're not in a media library by Katharine Schopflin I have now returned to the media world after an eight-month interlude in a government-funded business library. As I left my light and airy fourth-floor office to descend to a dusty basement filled with mobile racking where I now work, I was reminded of when I started at my previous job and how I knew that, Toto, I wasn't in media-land anymore. Although there were no set hours, people tended to arrive before 9 and leave at 5.30 on the dot. Everyone wore suits Monday to Thursday. On Friday, jeans with elasticated waists and supermarket-brand trainers abounded People were very, very grateful for any research we did for them and never shouted at us. Most people were over 40 and well-spoken white people educated at leading universities didn't dominate the organisation. My line manager was on the senior management team and suggestions I made in team meetings would be discussed at this level. My manager gave me time off during the working day to attend training courses and even alerted me to events she thought I should attend (if they were in the evening I was entitled to time in lieu) I had weekly one-to-ones during my probation period and my manager followed my progress with close attention and interest. At team meetings, everyone remembered what had been discussed before and had followed up their action points in the interim period. When a colleague in another department was unreasonable with me, instead of leaving me to fight the battle my manager said `leave this to me, I'll take it up with her line manager'. Nobody ever swore, kicked over chairs or bitched about customers behind their backs (well not much). Nobody ever said `well that's just the way we work around here and you'll just have to get used to it' Deadlines were often three weeks and a two-day deadline was considered `really urgent'. None of our users ever rang up and simultaneously started another conversation with someone else. Not even the people in Marketing. So why did I leave this lovely supportive atmosphere? Well, the first answer is that I missed the rude, shouty, grimy world of media organisations far more than I ever imagined I would. And the second is that this particular organisation will cease to exist at the end of the financial year and all staff were threatened with redundancy. Now, that did make me feel at home.
Correction Journalists and media professionals around the world rely on Factiva, a Dow Jones & Reuters Company, and its collection of more than 10,000 leading news and business publications. Whether they need to conduct secondary research and check facts for their own stories or review coverage in competing publications, Factiva offers a comprehensive, searchable archive of print media and web articles including The Times, The Wall Street Journal, the Financial Times and Reuters and Dow Jones newswires. Factiva helps editorial staff work more efficiently with time-saving features like email alerting, personalized news pages and the latest headlines delivered to their Mobile devices. Correspondents based in remote locations have access to a deep archive of local and global information, making them more productive and self-sufficient in every time zone. With Search 2.0's Discovery capabilities, journalists can explore new angles for a story by quickly uncovering common news themes and often-used keywords.
Deadline is produced by Paul Fairclough from the library at Time Out Magazine with contributions from Elena Botterill, Anke Settgast, and Katharine Schopflin. Please send news, reviews and letters to: Paul Fairclough. The opinions expressed in Deadline are not necessarily those of the AUKML.
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