It’s true. At a library you’re not assaulted by loaded or manipulated messages. I like to go to the Apple Store and work on projects with the geniuses there, but I also walk out with Apple merchandise. They’re teaching me, but they’re not teaching me about Windows. You have to be on guard everywhere in this culture; all information is loaded. But it’s not as if things aren’t being bought at the library. Books, materials, access to the databases all cost money, and librarians make choices. But they don’t turn around and sell us things. And if you ask a reference librarian which washing machine is the best buy, he or she will be as neutral as Consumers Digest. The library is a great place to go to sort out wild political claims. Verifiable information — the truth — is their standard.

Read all about it, here, at Salon

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