News Briefs
Staff -- School Library Journal, 5/1/2000
Jean Karl Dies
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Harry's Defense Team
"Muggles for Harry Potter" is a national organization launched to fight efforts to restrict access to J. K. Rowling's titles in schools. Eight associations--representing booksellers, librarians, publishers, teachers, writers, and citizens--formed the group to counter growing censorship of the Harry Potter series. "Muggles for Harry Potter is fighting for the right of students and teachers to use the best books that are available to children, even when some parents object," explains Christopher Finan, president of the American Booksellers Foundation for Free Expression. "The Potter books are helping turn video-game players into readers. We can't allow censorship to interfere with that." One of the group's objectives is to encourage people to report censorship attempts to www.mugglesforharrypotter.org. Although the group currently lacks funding, it is applying for grants and hopes to raise money through the sale of buttons featuring the organization's Potter artwork.
High-Tech Teens
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The McElderry Book Prize
Simon & Schuster has announced the debut of the McElderry Picture Book prize, named for distinguished children's book editor Margaret K. McElderry. A book contract and advance against royalties will be awarded for a project written and illustrated by someone who has never been published. Entries must be received no later than December 31, 2000; the winner will be announced in April 2001. The prize was established to mark the 30th anniversary of Margaret K. McElderry Books, an imprint of Simon & Schuster. The winner will be selected by a panel of S&S book editors, including McElderry.
The Filter Question
The use of Internet filters in public libraries appears to be on the rise. A recent survey by the California Library Association and the League of California Cities found that 28 percent of the state's public libraries are using them. A national study in 1998, by the National Commission on Library and Information Science and the American Library Association, found that 15 percent of public libraries used them. The California statistics are based on 89 responses to 180 surveys mailed to public libraries in the state. The survey also revealed that more than half the responding libraries required parental consent for children using Internet workstations. And half the libraries using filters use them only on children's workstations. The most commonly used filters are Library Channel and Net Nanny.
