Libraries: The Information Commons of Civil Society

Found at: http://hdl.handle.net/10535/4085
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Type:	Working Paper
Author:	Kranich, Nancy
Date:	2002
Agency:
Series:
URI:	http://hdl.handle.net/10535/4085
Sector:	Information & Knowledge Social Organization
Region:	North America
Subject(s):	information commons social capital democracy citizen participatory management collective action
Abstract:	"In this essay, I discuss the importance of social capital as a catalyst to rekindle civil society as well as the key role of the library as an information commons for engaging citizens and encouraging participation in community life. For more than two centuries, libraries have served communities in the United States and abroad as information commons. In that role, they have helped promote an informed citizenry, offering safe spaces for deliberation and exchange of a wide spectrum of ideas. For a democracy of the digital age to flourish, citizens need free and open access to ideas more than ever. The salient tension of our times stems from those barriers that deny citizens their full information rights. In the conclusion of this essay, I suggest an action agenda aimed at ensuring that everyone has the opportunity to participate in a digital age democracy."

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